Guesses for Coachella 2012

Some haphazard assumptions:
M83
Florence and the Machine
Prodigy
The Belle Brigade
Blind Pilot
Das Rascist
Keep Shelley in Athens
Plaid
Holy Ghost!
The Rapture
The Head and the Heart
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks
The Horrors
First Aid Kit
Other Lives
Tune-yards
The Vaccines
Two Door Cinema Club

Wishlist:
Childish Gambino
Little Dragon
Bowie
Baths
Vincent James McMorrow

Mid April Love

What is this warmth radiating from the sky? And forcing me to find my spring dresses amidst my winter coats and long sleeves shirts? Though TS Eliot will never have me forget that April is the cruellest month; so let's not forget. Let's coast on through from its painful grasp and follow melodic footsteps towards jubliant sunshine in the following form:

The Antlers - Every Night My Teeth are Falling
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Belong
Ratatat - Loud Pipes
Yeasayer - Madder Red
Menomena - Killemall
Cat Stevens - Wild World
LCD Soundsystem - Home

Confession

Okay fine, I'll admit it: new Pains of Being Pure at Heart? Growing on me.

Well, just the the title track "Belong". It's a step away from their debut, which was a homage to the Field Mice. But the Field Mice were rifting off Factory Records' The Wake. So everything's cyclic and few things are new. Anyways, the new album Belong is a lazy version of the Stone Roses who were a less fuzzy version of My Bloody Valentine. Didn't I say things are cyclic? In other words, it's soft dreamy pop music over synths, a barely there bass, a shoegaze wisp of vocals, and a bit of lazy drumming.

But the more I listen to it, the more it grows on me! How infectious! Stream it at their website.

"In hospitals, in shopping malls with heavy heads and locker walls. An empty street at 3 a.m., you told me you’re not one of them."

We just don't belong.

(Now off to Coachella!)

First of many marriage proposals

Dear Brent Knorf,

Can I please marry your vocals? Just them, nothing else. I don't need your physical body, although it might help to have when I ask you to improvise a song for me. You might need your fingers then to play the piano, guitar, watercups, or glockenspiel.

Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Me

Summer time mix

After Coachella, things became harried and I didn't have a life outside of work. That and the music scene lacked substance. So here's a summer happy go lucky, yee haw in the haystacks mix. Hopefully come this fall, I'll be able to find the time to write biased reviews. Or maybe I'll pull a Bon Iver and lock myself in my room with Kid A on repeat. Oh, speaking of Kid A, let's start this list.

Jigsaw Falling into Place - Radiohead (In Rainbows)
Russia - Ramona Falls (Intuit)
Ghosts - Laura Marling (Alas I Cannot Swim)
Say Hello to the Angels - Interpol (Turn on the Bright Lights)
I Can Change - LCD Soundsystem (This is Happening)
Tightrope - Janelle Monae (The ArchAndroid)
The Underdog - Spoon (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga)
Floating Vibes - Surfer Blood (Astrocoast)
Rebellion (Lies) - Arcade Fire (Funeral)


As always, if there's something new and good on the horizon, drop me a note.

Jefferson Airplane

Jefferson Airplane are normally not my go-to band when I'm making a visit to the HeartBreak Hotel. (Not that my heart is broken or anything near that metaphor. After all, Germany won their match today and now I'm trying to devise a plan to see how I can marry Lukas Podolski and Thomas Muller. Polygamy is legit in Deutschland, right?)

But sometimes we forget how amazing the musical world is until one leaves their itunes on shuffle. Wham bam, thank you ma'am, and we are reminded. I think the world has forgotten Jefferson Airplane for its musical talents and instead credit the downfall of music to "We Built this City on Rock n Roll." I will not battle anyone on the merits of that song, but let's rewind to the days of Jefferson Airplane and let the Starship part be a distant future.

"Coming Back to Me" is an instigator of bedroom tears. If I were a 15 year old girl with a severe case of broken heartitis (which sounds like a demented case of hepatitis), then this song would be my anthem. Curtains drawn and lifeless body sprawled on my bed, I'd let Marty Balin tell me "I saw you, I saw you, I saw you comin' back to me." Insert a choked sob. Cross out "CB + JG = 4eva." And curse the torturous world of love. Oh, to be 15 again. "Crown of Creation" marches Grace Slick's vocals  on par with Pat Benetar. "Embryonic Journey" is a drift on some interesting guitar finger picking. On the same plate, we've got "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit" but those are the one-hit wonder type of songs that tend to pave over the genuine talent of a band.

Anyways, that's your blast to the past moment.

Hi world!

We're nearing the half way mark for oh-ten and I'm sad to report that it's been an uninteresting five months so far. Broken Bells, Gorillaz, and Vampire Weekend have been my lifeline these past few months but to list only three bands is a heart breaker. I am looking forward to new LCD Soundsystem as they were the absolute high light of Coachella this year (next to Gorillaz). All the major blogs have had good reviews for LCD so that makes me more excited than bananas in pajamas. My favorite show review comes from Pitchfork where the author notes that most bands are sonically disorganized when drunk but James Murphy channels soul and charisma after swigging more than enough champagne and whiskey. He is my Williamsburg hero. He slurred his way through "Losing My Edge" at Coachella but that made him infinitely more amazing. How can that double standard exist?

So, 2010, what do ya for me?

Is it spring yet? Because there is a spring in my step and I am giddy with spring fever. I'm also done using the word "spring" in my sentences. So here's my requisite Coachella post. Take a gander at the line up and tell me you're not melting in your pants at who Goldenvoice managed to wrangle this year.

The headliners are a brush off the shoulders. I'm intrigued by Jay-Z and he's proved himself at Glastonbury. I've seen Muse before and I wasn't impressed. So I hope there's another good band playing at the same time as them. But Sunday, oh bloody Sunday, there will be high expectations for Gorillaz. Damon Albarn, you best impress and maybe give us a "Woo-hoo, I feel like heavy metal!" shout out.

Now for the day by day break down. The boring shit. But hey, if you're reading this, you either love me to pieces or were led astray by google search.

Friday: LCD Soundsystem is my headliner that night. I wonder how they're going to be on the large outdoor stage as they're more of a tent band. But James Murphy, he has never disappointed me before. Them Crooked Vultures. I expect Dave Grohl and Jay-Z to high-five right before/after their sets. Public Image Limited = Johnny Rotten, enough said. I hope he spits into the crowd and some lucky photographer will catch that shot or be saliva-attacked. Passion Pit, Grizzly Bear, Echo and the Bunnymen share same font size billing. And I know these bands will performed adequately well beneath the blazing Indio sun. But as the font size gets smaller, we have She&Him with my darling M Ward and Zooey what's-her-name. Which means her husband Ben Gibbard will be in tow and I know Jenny Lewis and Jimmy Tamborello aren't touring. So why not have the Postal Service perform? If just to stand on stage and say "Fuck you Owl City." Grace Jones. Why is her name not in larger letters? I am stumped by this snub to the disco diva queen. She sold out the Hollywood Bowl! Ra Ra Riot, Deer Tick, La Roux will have me meander towards their stage for a brief listen before I beg for shade and water.

Saturday: Not. Impressed. Muse = no. Faith No More = double no. Tiesto = triple no. MGMT = cringe. Can somebody explain to me how we time travled to 2004 because Coheed and Cambria are the sub headliners. They are on the same bill line as Devo, the Dead Weathers, and Hot Chip? Alternate dimension, perhaps? Let's just skip the sub headliners because Saturday is an audio wasteland. So the XX, Mew, Tokyo Police Club, White Rabbits, Portugal. the Man, Girls. Beach House, Edward Sharp and the Magnetic Fields. I am so set for indie rock that day.

Sunday: We've reached the crossroads to audio heaven. Gorillaz, Pavement, Thom York, Phoeniz, Spoon!!! In 2005, while most of the crowd caught Coldplay, I saw Spoon and that was worth my night. Granted, I was curled up on the deserted bleachers but I would have chosen the cold temperatures over Coldplay's out of key set any time. Sunny Day Real Estate will be a collision of guitar reverb, but nowhere close to last year's My Bloody Valentine. Belinda Carlise, my ears are still humming. Matt & Kim, Miike Snow, Local Natives, Mayer Hawthorne will round out the rest of festival trampling. The biggest surprise of the festival will have to be a performance by Yann Tiersen. His name might not be familiar but if you've seen Amelie, then you too will wonder how he will bring whimsy to the desert. I'm looking forward to it but orchestras in the heat don't mesh well.

Is it April yet?

Tracks and tricks

Alright, let's get this list out of the way so I can resume packing my pokemon cards for my trip north. Without further ado:

Top ten albums of 2009 in no particular order:
-Dead Man's Bones, Dead Man's Bones Children's choir that does Halloween love songs.
-The Antlers, Hospice The aching grief of sitting by a hospital bed as your love deteriorates, physically and emotionally.
-The XX, XX Overwhelming quiet pierced by vocal duet and we are passersby who peep through holes at their conversation
-Rural Alberta Advantage, Hometowns Longing for what was, be it hearts or homes
-Franz Ferdinand, Tonight: Franz Ferdinand A night out on the town where the hours blur and so do the faces
-Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix Infectiously good music that will you have bopping in your pants
-Alela Diane, To Be Still Northeastern songbird with prickly guitar strums and a mother's voice
-Friendly Fires, Friendly Fires Pleading vocals for you to join the dance riot. Sidenote: really good looking guitarist, too
-Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, Outer South It's Conor and other folks. Not to be confused with Monsters of Folk, where it's also Conor and other folks.
-Various artists, Dark was the Night Melee of indie artists and all proceeds went to charity

Favorite songs of oh-nine:
"Dull Life" The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
"The Dethbridge in Lethbridge" Rural Alberta Advantage
"Liztomania" Phoenix
"Seven Seventeen" The Wooden Birds
"Never Coming Out" Or, The Whale
"High Ground" Orenda Fink
"Fever" Neko Case
"Map of the World," "Temazcal," "Ahead of the Curve" Monsters of Folk
"Ulysses," "Bite Hard" Franz Ferdinand
"Ten Women," "To All The Lights In The Windows" Conor Oberst and the MVB
"Bear," "Epilogue" The Antlers
"Daniel" Bats for Lashes
"Titus Andronicus" Titus Andronicus
"Strobe," "Photobooth" Friendly Fires

As you've noticed, there was no mention of Animal Collective, even though they've topped nearly every single "end of the year" list. And "My Girls" was a highly rated single. Unfortunately, that album barely made a bleep on my radar this year. The band is starting to reach Radiohead-level art expectations for me. I like Radiohead and think Thom Yorke is a bloody brilliant songwriter, but that's about as far as the compliment go. If Radiohead never released another album, my world will not explode. Same goes for Animal Collective. AC is supposed transcend, er, they're supposed to transcend something. The labels of freak-folk? Neo-psychedelic experimental pop? Indie rock? I like their use of layering vocals and the moog's. But I also hated "Panda Pitch" and "Strawberry Jam," so, uhhhhhh, let's just end 2009 with this: More cowbells!

Surprise!

Tuesday marked the "no-go" list. Wednesday marks the "pass go and collect 200 dollars" list. I came across a lot of stuff I will pretend I never heard. But also I came across a lot of musicians that are now on my to-be-worshiped list. It reinforces my love for music and how organic music is. Music is a constantly changing force, where no two (good) songs should be alike. After all, there are only so many notes and chords to choose from. Yet under those limited circumstances, these musicians have chosen to chart further than those expectations. Given those sets of notes, they've crafted unique songs that set my heart on fire. (Granted, I can hear inspiration of past bands in certain songs but we'll call that admiration.) That's why I love music so much. It's unpredictable. It's shape shifts more often than public opinion. And it's a labor of love.

I'm officially a fan of Phoenix as of last Monday. I don't listen to the radio so I never heard their radio friendly singles: Lisztomania and 1901. After much convincing, I used Google's friendly music search function and instantly fell in love after five seconds of Lisztomania. Those initial five seconds are two repeated notes but they set the tone for the rest of the album. It's head swaying, seat bouncing summer sunshine pop goodness. I'm not talking boyband sex driven lyrics pop, I'm talking exceptional rock n roll hit the switch pop.

Hey Marasilles is an orchestral folk pop band from Seattle, which is not surprising as the Decemberists, Fleet Foxes, the Builders and the Butchers, and Loch Lomond are from the Northwest and orchestral folk pop bands tend to emerge from that area like dandelions in open fields. I'll write a further blurb on this band next year but trust me when I say, start listening to them now.

Dead Man's Bones proved that Ryan Gosling needs to propose to me.* I feared this band would go the way of Jared Leto or Juliette Lewis' dive into music: annoying and unnecessary. But Gosling bucked the trend of actors-cum-musicians to craft a handful of Halloween singalongs, treading the path of broken hearts with werewolves, ghost ships, and graves. Kudos for including the Silverlake Conservatory of Music Children's Choir. Though Gosling's been getting most of the press, I have to give Zach Shields three thumbs up for being a grand bandmate, co-songwriter, and vocalist. His track  "Pa Pa Power" is easily my favorite with its upbeat intro and chant-along lyrics.

*what a marriage proposal has to do with anything music-related is anyone's guess, but indulge me for a second here

Friendly Fires will round out the list and they are cute enough to kidnap, especially guitarist Edd Gibson. But that is a scheme to be detailed another day. These St Albans boys have managed to fuse a bunch of labels together: indie dance rock synth pop. I'm not sure how they managed that but imagine Bloc Party to a less screeching degree. Vocalist Ed Macfarlane is a crooner and will swoon dive you with tales of girls and downtrodden romances. The man who keeps it all together is their drummer Jack Savidge, who sidelines as a cowbell player. I saw these boys play during the summer and the only thing that kept me from bum-rushing the stage and dancing my pants off along side Edd Gibson was my dignity (and sobriety). They're bloody brilliant and I hope 2010 has greater things in store. But when you reach certified gold, have a Mercury prize nomination, and played at Glastonbury, things should be pretty great as is.

Love/Hate

I encountered many surprises this year and was very please to have come across new bands. However, by the time December rolled around and my stacks of music magazines reached my knees, I could have strangled the next reporter if they mentioned the following bands:

HEALTH
Girls
Wavves
No Age
Neon Indian
Crystal Castles
Ariel Pink

I'm also pretty sure all of these bands played at the Smell in the past year, if not housing residencies there. For kicks, let's throw in Phoenix and the XX as well. But I became a fan of those two, so let's not include them into the hater's list.

A dominating factor between the above mentioned band is their penchant for "noise-rock" or lo-fi bullshit. Yes, I will call it noise or bullshit because I can't discern one song from the next. After giving their album a listen, my ears are mad at me for treating them to a 36 minute track with slight pauses between moog's and minor chord changes. Neon Indian, Crystal Castles and Ariel Pink can suck it. I've seen their live shows so I feel qualified to say so. I'm not amused. I'm not entertained. And I'm really not drunk enough to give a flying finger flip. So my problem lies with HEALTH, Girls, Wavves, and No Age. I want to like them. I truly, madly, deeply do. I forced my niece to sit through a Wavves music video with me and she clapped at the end. So while I would love to love them, I'm waiting for a track worthy of my admiration. So boys, I demand better come 2010.

And please don't break my heart with these bursting expectations.

(Not so) Final Countdown

We are trampling upon the final days of 2009 and I normally don't make a big deal of year ends but as a blogger, it makes for great themes and easy categorization. So let's just move on and start with the first list. And let's also recall, everything's in no particular order.

Some of the more interesting shows I've attended this year:
-Islands at Sunset Junction. Their performance of "Where There's A Will There's A Whalebone" was entrancing as the crowd was bopping along the best that hipsters can. But when local act Busdriver came to rap the bridge, I was floored. Better than the original track.
-Bon Iver at the Forever Hollywood Cemetery. 6 am with rolling fog through the grove of palm trees, chanting monks for an opening act, and as the bleak sun peeks through the gray clouds, Justin Vernon's haunting falsetto carries over the cemetery field.
-Dead Man's Bones at the Echo. Children's choir in black robes. No harm, no foul, no kool-aid involved. Everyone was in the Halloween spirit and Ryan Gosling proved to be more than a pretty face and transcended the "actor-slash-musician" curse.
-Diplo at La Cita. My friend called me, "Hey, do you want to have some beers tonight? There's a DJ set at La Cita." He failed to mention it was Diplo. Granted the man only performed for less than an hour but on that rainy night as we were about to trudge our way home, we stayed an extra hour as the pulsating beats dragged us back into Diplo's lair.
-Choir of Young Believers at Spaceland. For a band that doesn't speak much English, I commend the head Believer for writing his songs in English. I also think without their celloist, their live performance wouldn't have had such an impact on me. But orchestral pop always has a soft spot in my heart.

These shows were but the tip of the iceberg of shows I went to in oh-nine. I'm already looking forward to what 2010 has in store for me and though the year hasn't started, I've penciled in a few dates. I'm also too lazy to post the pictures I took from these shows, but trust me when I say they were epic. Which means, you, yes, YOU should catch these band at one point in your life.

Oh and be proud of me. I didn't mention any Conor in this list. Granted, I saw him more times than I should have but he's my Conor. And I (musically and lyrically) love him. Always have, always will.

Xmas eve!

Happy whatever to you and yours. Here's Stereogum and team9's gift to us all. Take a listen and visit their page for direct downloads.

I'm only 45 percent ashamed to say that I like the U2/Taylor Swift mashup. But it's actually pretty good! Top votes go to that one and the Cure/Phoenix one. Vampire Weekend/Rupert Holmes is an interesting also-ran but it sounds more like a remix of VW than a mashup.

Oh well.

Hate to say I told you so

It's Sunday so that means I buy a shit ton of CDs and hope that I find a new gem. I combed through the "Best of" 2009 lists and realized that I skipped over many hyped albums: Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavillion, Phoenix's Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, Miike Snow's self-titled, and Dirty Projectors' Bitte Orca. Honestly, I wasn't planning on hearing any of these albums but curiosity got the better of me, especially since three of these album have made every list I've read: but so did Bradford Cox and I hate him. For no apparent reason, too.

But these four bands had inadvertently fallen on my "For No Apparent Reason" list and once you've been FNAR'ed, it's hard to fall back on my good side. Usually it'll take an act of God. I once hated the Arctic Monkeys until I heard "Teddy Picker" in my friend's car. Instant love afterward. Now they reign supreme on my list of "Favorite Bands from Sheffield." In fact, they could be number one.

So when I come across a song that really piques my interest, there's some self-loathing involved as well. Because I wish I could have gotten rid of that prejudice and given the band a try in the first place. Oh well, better late than never.

So Phoenix, I salute you for reigning me with Liztomania. Barely three seconds into the song, I said to myself "Fuck, this is a good song." And all I heard were two repeated notes during those three seconds.

Animal Collective: You're alright. Way too overhyped, but alright with me.

Miike Snow and the Dirty Projectors, I'm still on hold with you because I haven't heard your album yet. But I will as soon as iTunes finishes downloading.

Bands on the FNAR list:
the Dirty Projectors (I'm really forcing myself to listen to Bitte)
Deerhunter/Atlas Sound/Bradford Cox
St Vincent
The Pain of Being Pure at Heart (one song in and I realized they ripped off the Field Mice, who I don't particularly care for because it's lo-fi shoegaze)
Au Revior Simone (I saw them in 2006 and was not impressed, annoyed in fact.)
Wilco (Yankee Foxtrot Hotel, ehhhhhhhh.)
CSS
Neon Indian (okay, this is legit hate because I don't care for this current fad of lo-fi moog electropop)
La Roux
Annie
Uffie
Julian Casablancas
Paul Banks/Julian Plenti (which is weird because I love Interpol)
Son Volt
Devandra Banhart
Volcano Choir

...should I stop there? Okay, part 2 will come when I'm too lazy to type up a review/praise of my new favorite band.

Rural Alberta Advantage at the Bootleg Theater Tuesday night. I'm going to shout out Neutral Milk Hotel songs and see if one of them gets covered. It's the closest I'll get to hearing that band live, unless I listening to a live recording. Tomayto, tomahto.

Get Down Stay Down

December is a bad month for music. For movies, it's awesome because Hollywood and its affiliate cram in their final Oscar films and advertising. But with music, not so much because of ranking reasons. Unless you're a small town indie band who does care about rankings, no good release happen during the year's end. To make up for this dearth, I flipped through Best Of lists to catch what I've missed or looked over. December 2009 is especially critical because it marks the end of the year and the decade, so double duty!

Based on a few music blogs, I've hunted down copies of David Bazan's Curse Your Branches, Thao and the Get Down Stay Down's We Brave Bee Stings And All, Song: Ohia's The Magnolia Electric Co and Belle and Sebastian's Fold Your Hand Child, You Walk Like a Peasant.

So let's start with Thao and the Get Down Stay Down: I was pleasantly surprised by her and her backing band. I expected cutsey, Emily Haines styled-vocals but I got Feist's beautiful baritone instead. Well, since she's a woman, it's mezzo soprano. But tomayto, tomahto. We Brave Bee Stings And All is a cohesive title for the album as Thao takes us through the whimsical journey of childhood segueing into adulthood. Nothing overwhelms on this album, from the trumpets to the guitars or the jaunty piano lines and even the handclaps on "Feet Asleep." All the instruments, including Thao's voice, merge into a warm blanket for the ears. The album is a bandaid for scraped knees and broken hearts. My only regret is not picking it up when it was released. My parting words will be taken from Thao Nguyen herself. "We brave bee stings and all/And we don't dive, we cannonball."

Words to live by.

Location is Everything

I found my Jade Tree Record compilation last night and I'm over the moon because I thought I had lost it. I also found a stack of records that I haven't copied to my computer yet. I own "Veni Vidi Vicious?" "The Life Pursuit?" Wow, news to me. The comp features a nice selection of bands, most recognizably The Promise Ring, Jets to Brazil and Pedro the Lion. Not so noticeable bands but still beloved by me are Denali, onelinedrawing, and New End Original. My favorite track is Lukewarm by New End Original.

Fun drum roll, fun hook, somewhat simple guitar chords, it's a poppy little indie rock song from the vault. So thanks, Jonah Matranga for this little gem from my high school days because the shout out loud anthem is still valid years today: I never want to be lukewarm and I never want to say my best days are behind.

P.S. Speaking of my high school days, I had a fit of word vomit on my friend's page: Permanent Standby. I need better metaphors but please do a hop skip long jump over there for some musical interludes for when I'm not available.

The Antlers

It is cold where she lies and when she wakes, white walls meet her eyes. Blank canvas for her unfocused eyes and you are hunched over with grief as you wait for the recognition to light up in her face. But such dark circles underlay her weary face and she gropes for your hand, the only warm thing in the room. While she sleeps, attached to wires and tubes, your own heartbeat rises and falls with the beep of the machine monitor. It is the only sound of life in this sterile room. Until you speak. To her.

This is Hospice by the Antlers. And that introduction was needed to prepare you for 53 minutes of highs and lows with main Antler-man Peter Silberman. This album is an emotional tour d'force. It is a journey. It is a march through a Russian winter. It is helplessness, stark fear, and loss. And so, so much more.

Sidelined as a witness to a love one's descent from cancer, Hospice begins with a sweeping Prologue and ends with a fluttering falsetto Epilogue, in between we sit fixated in bated breath. Silberman's smooth, patient voice treks through strained moments of dismay and simple melancholy. Without his voice, this album could have been a sad contender as Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion's little sister. With it, we play spectator to a hospital bed-bound victim. Each straining note, gripped hands are squeezed tighter. And we wait for Silberman to break beneath despair. Yet he never wavers.

On "Kettering," the words are slipping so softly that the words drip from his lips along a piano march. "There was no saving you" he ends as a fuzzy guitar reverb and drums segue us to "Sylvia," aptly named after Sylvia Plath. "Bear" is the most tragic (and easily best) track on this harrowing tale as it opens with a simple piano arrangement that could be for a child's mobile. But equating a bear cub with an unwanted pregnancy is where the beautiful turns into the forlorn as the chorus sweeps us into the realization that "we're too old/we're not old at all." How does one measure a life? Old enough to live, young enough to die.

I stick to my quick blurb on "Bear" as a summary of this album. With each track, we see Silberman's vulnerability slowly exposed and it is terrifying. And it is paralyzing to hope for a better end but when the penultimate track is titled "Wake," there is futile knowledge that the end is cold. So we listen, with knees pulled up to our chest and clasped hands to our lips. And we tremble along.

Tokyo-->Los Angeles

(Scanned postcard? Nope.)

I've returned from the lush green and red of Japan's foliage and I still want to marry my J-pop star idol. I didn't commit any international acts of kidnapping or poltical overthrows, hence my ability to post this entry. December will mark a return of fluid reviews. As a sign of my triumph escape through US Customs, here's a track by a Japanese band called OOIOO. Despite their band origin, their music is about as stereotypical un-Japanese as you can get. Tribal drumming and chanting, frentic beats, and downright psychedlic, they're pretty fun. For four little Asian girls, they pack a punch.



And just for kicks, here's a throwback to 2004.

Hiatus

I'm off to the other side of the world and would write an entry on pop music in Asia, but uhhhhhhhhh, let's not. Instead, I bought the following albums to listen to on the plane ride:

AA Bondy - American Hearts, which is what M Ward would have written if he was a boy from middle Americana who didn't sound like his voice box was scraped by cigarettes. Harmonicas galore!

I found my copy of M Ward's Transfiguration of Vincent and am so excited that I just can't hide it. You know, you know. I've seen him live and this man can turn a guitar beyond the definition of what a guitar can do. Finger pickin' awe. Musical talents aside, his voice is like a long drag of a cigarette. Smooth, calming, but laced with guilt that you shouldn't be smoking in the first place.

The Antlers - Hospice. "Bear" initially caught my ear, based on the title, because of my fondness for the majestic creatures. Then vocalist Peter Silberman takes me for a twist-turn ride through expectations and loss. His voice strains and all I want to do is take his hand and tell him it'll be okay. But I'm too busy crying in his arms, while he still sings in stretching notes. For four minutes and three seconds, his vulnerability is exposed and it is terrifying. With that said, the rest of the album is amazing and sits on my best of 2009 list.

Wishlist

On my commute to work, I think about acts/things that would make the world a better place. For instance, if I found the cure to cancer. Or if I were president, my first act would be to grant myself season passes to the Hollywood Bowl. But it wouldn't have to be front row box seats because I'm not greedy.

Today, I wish that the Arcade Fire followed in the footsteps of Neutral Milk Hotel. What path am I talking about? Release a critically acclaimed full-length record that the musical world is still creaming its pants over a decade later, do a grand tour and finally break up. Hell, I think My Bloody Valentine might have originated this plan with Loveless. Kevin Shields, you neurotic innovator.

Neon Bible, while good, was lackluster to the grandiose swell of Funeral. Which makes sense as the "break-out, indie darling meets the Universe" album is the hardest to follow. Other bands have fallen to this trap, some times known as the Sophomore Slump. The Strokes should have stopped after 12:51. Interpol had Turn on the Bright Lights. I'm glad the Postal Service had one album to their name. That's all they needed. So who else is on the list and where should they have stopped their careers?

Rilo Kiley with Take Offs and Landing. Under the Blacklight was a hot mess of homages to 1980 female singers. Jenny Lewis channeled Heart, Gloria Estefan and an array of other teased hair mallrats. What the hell is "dejalo?" And why should I be doin' the smoke detector? I will concede to a b-side of "The Execution of All Things" though as it's my favorite song from the band post-Take Offs.

Death Cab for Cutie after Transatlanticism. We all know "I will Follow You into the Dark" was the start of the end. You knew it. I knew it. Hell, Ben Gibbard must have known it. Give me the bite of old Ben Gibbard who would ask, "Am I drunk enough to drive you home?" (via "Champagne from a Paper Cup.")

The Decemberist after Picaresque. They ooze stage presence and I've never been let down by their live show. Was it the switch to Capitol Records for their last two releases that had me turn a deaf ear? Or am I just bored with their penchant for references to old folk tales and bayonets?

Fountains of Wayne after Welcome Interstate Manager as the constant rotation of "Stacy's Mom" on MTV proved to be the entrance to "One Hit Wonder" land for the band. Damn that infectious chorus and Stacy's mom who's got it going on. This album proved Adam Schlesinger genius song writing capabilities as he switched multiple genres, from crooning country to heartbreak emo to handclap pop.

Vampire Weekend has me on the fence. I know Contra will not be released till next year but their debut topped so many "Best of 2008" lists that I worry for their follow-up.

Speaking of "Best of 2008" and follow-ups, Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes are taking well-deserved breaks, but I wonder what 2010 has in store for both groups. A tiny fragment of myself flirts with the hope that this was a flash in the pan moment. How do you top For Emma? Actually on second thought, Fleet Foxes need to merge with My Morning Jacket and we would have an epic end result smashed heart strings and tearful eardrums. Thinks of the angelic harmonies!

This is becoming an unending list. So feel free to add your own.