Blogcritics

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Confessions of a Fanboy 014: Best Albums of 2006

Josh Hathaway — Sun, 7 Jan 2007 12:50:44 EST

Editing the BC Magazine Best Album of 2006 was a big help to me in compiling my own. There was never a question in my mind as to which album I would select for top honors. Seeing the albums my co-conspirators selected reminded me of just how many great records were released this year. It is good to be reminded of this because the “too cool for school” kids (yes, I mean you, Pitchfork) will try to convince you nothing good is being made these days. That is bullshit. There are a ton of great records waiting to be discovered. I was going to say you just have to work a little harder to find them, but I am taking care of that for you. These “Best Of” lists can sometimes be a work in progress. Sure, I can rattle off a list of the best albums I listened to with a 2006 copyright. Five years from now I could buy a 2006 album, one I missed, that would render this list moot. It could happen, but I am prepared to boldly proclaim these to be the best albums of 2006... that I heard in 2006. I have divided my list into two categories: one for new albums and another for compilations, re-issues, and box sets. I have also listed my current favorite track from each of the new albums. In many cases, my favorite song on these albums has changed many times over. These are the songs that are doing it for me today and if you are on limited funds, these are the songs I would check out first. Of course, you will still need all of these albums. This is just to get you started. One last thing before we get to the list. The links that follow will take you to those albums on this list I had the chance to review throughout the year. With that, behold, my Best of 2006. Happy New Year! Best New Albums of 2006: Guster – Ganging Up on the Sun: I know some of you wish I would promise to make 2007 a Guster-free year. That won’t happen. I listened to this album from beginning to end three times on the way to ring in the new year with friends in South Carolina. There may be no such thing as a perfect record, but Ganging Up on the Sun comes damn close. So many times an album is proclaimed to be the best of the year and is forgotten by next year. I cannot imagine that happening here. Current Favorite Track: "Satellite." Tom Petty – Highway Companion: I looked forward to this record with more anticipation than any other and I was not disappointed. It is a more stripped-down affair than the title or producer (Jeff Lynne) might otherwise suggest, but the songwriting is again first rate. Current Favorite Track: “Down South.” Barrett Martin - Earthspeaker: Contrary to the prevailing opinions, there are too many great albums released each year to keep up with them all. Earthspeaker is a masterful successor to 2004’s The Painted Desert. Martin continues to play more instruments than I can count with names I often cannot pronounce and somehow manages to meld this sonic diversity into memorable songs. Current Favorite Track: “Agbadza.” Mark Lanegan & Isobel Campbell – Ballad of the Broken Seas: Did I mention sonic diversity? These two voices are about as different as can be and they work marvelously together. Continuing with that sonic diversity theme, a bullwhip is used as a percussion instrument on the hotter-than-it-has-any-right-to-be cover of the Hank Williams classic, “Ramblin’ Man.” Not every song on the record works, but the best moments here are more than worth the price of admission. I only wish I could see one of the handful of UK dates Lanegan and Campbell are doing together. Current Favorite Track: “Revolver.” Thom Yorke – The Eraser: If you hated Radiohead’s Kid A, best skip this album. Of course, if you hated Kid A, I have no choice but to question your taste. Where that album often buried the vocals in the mix, Eraser brings them out front utilizing Yorke’s powerful vocal instrument. There are some maddening, tedious moments on the record, but they are outweighed by great songs like the title track. Thanks to The Prestige, TheWifeToWhomI’mMarried and I both have the same Current Favorite Track: “Analyse.” Bob Dylan – Modern Times: I still prefer “Love & Theft,” but Modern Times is yet the latest chapter in the Dylan revival. I find it interesting that it took Dylan five years to record this follow up and so many of the songs have direct ties to other famous works. “Thunder on the Mountain” worships Alicia Keys over the top of a Chuck Berry riff. I don’t know how Dylan can claim a sole writing credit for “Rollin’ and Tumblin’” when the riff owes so much to the Muddy Waters’ classic of the same name, and “Someday Baby” nicks plenty of influence from Waters’ “Trouble No More.” Is Dylan running out of ideas or is he simply drawing inspiration from all the right places? I suspect more the latter but cannot completely dismiss the former. Regardless, Dylan has crafted another winner. Current Favorite Track: “Beyond the Horizon.” Robert Randolph & The Family Band - Colorblind: I never expected to love this record as much as I did! It is fun, frenetic, and catchy. It also emphasizes slick over Randolph’s masterful steel guitar work more than what I would like, but the album still works. I am hoping Colorblind follows the pattern of The Grateful Dead and other great jam bands: the album versions are the jumping off point for the stage. Let’s hope a live album follows. Current Favorite Track: “Thrill of It.” Bruce Springsteen – We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions: I have been scolded for daring to heap anything but massive amounts of praise on this album. I will confess, I like it more than I thought I would and like it more now than I did upon its initial release (and subsequent repackaging). The Springsteen version of “Mrs. McGrath” will always make me cringe, but other songs from the record have grown on me. I would love it if this band reconvenes to record an album of Springsteen originals- the best of both worlds. Current Favorite Track: “Jacob’s Ladder.” Leigh Nash – Blue on Blue: This is another album that surprised me this year. I had no expectations for it- I did not even intend to buy it. I am very glad I did. It is catchy in a sneaky, sublime, and charming way. This is not the type of album that will garner massive sales or rave reviews. It is a simple, sweet little record and I never mind hearing it. Current Favorite Track: “Angel Tonight.” Barenaked Ladies – Barenaked Ladies Are Me: I have counted myself among the Barenaked Ladies fans for some time now but thought I was over them. BLAM has brought me back into the fold. The album is too long and there is some filler, but I found myself queuing it up again and again. I caught myself tapping my foot and cracking up during “Bank Job.” “Sound of Your Voice” still sounds like a Queen song to me and I love it. Current Favorite Track: “Adrift.” Built to Spill – You in Reverse: YIR is not a collection of singles but a carefully crafted collection of songs that functions best when taken all at once. It can be a daunting task for those of us with short attention spans, but we are rewarded for our perseverance. I have always loved the Billy Corgan method of layering guitars (for my money, the Zwan record is the best example of this). Doug Martsch’s approach is similar, but he is a far more imaginative player than Corgan. The songs on YIR are filled with huge walls of guitars, complimenting and competing with each other. “Goin’ Against Your Mind” is a staggering opus that builds and deconstructs only to build up again. Current Favorite Track: “Goin’ Against Your Mind.” Johnny Cash – American V: A Hundred Highways: This is as elegant a rumination on death, life, love, and loss I have ever heard. Would Highways feel as poignant if it were not a posthumous release featuring the last song Cash ever wrote and some of the final tracks he recorded before his passing? I will always hear this album through that prism. The ghosts of Johnny Cash and his beloved June Carter Cash are as important a presence as any instrument on the record. Their passing and, according to Cash’s ever-present faith, reuniting make this all the more beautiful. Current Favorite Track: "If You Could Read My Mind." Re-Issues/Compilations/Box Sets The Byrds – There is a Season: This is the best $29.99 I spent all year. Through this box I became acquainted with the great recorded works of the original five man lineup and was introduced to the genius of Gram Parsons. Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band – Hammersmith Odeon, London 1975: This, my friends, is what a live album should be. A complete show, expertly recorded, documenting a fabulous band at the height of their performing power. If more record labels would use this as a blueprint for future live releases, they could damn near put the bootleggers out of business. This souvenir from the Born to Run tour is a must-own for any serious rock and roll fan. It almost frightens me when I consider that many Springsteen fans say the band was better on the Darkness tour. John Lee Hooker – Hooker: Finally, a retrospective that brings together important tracks from Hooker’s entire recording career. The early stuff is best, but listening to the sound of the inimitable one develop, expand, and mature is a real thrill.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 013: F*** DaVinci and Viva La Beck! ... or When a Song Ruins Your Life, Pt. 2

Josh Hathaway — Mon, 25 Dec 2006 22:38:37 EST

I have cracked the code! JUMANJI!My mind has been replaying a snippet of a song for a couple of weeks now and I could not place it. It has been like a broken record in my head and it has been driving me mad. Over and over, I would hear a melancholy voice sing, "Something better than this..."I tried searching it in Google and Yahoo, but with so little to go on I came up with 10,000,000 results. I combed through a few of those hits and I found it: "Side of the Road" by Beck from Sea Change.I feel a sense of release, of relief. I am going to listen to this song for an hour or two now.Now that I have brought it up, I know at least one of my Mondo Brethren is a Beck devotee. Sea Change is probably my second favorite Beck album. They tend to shuffle back and forth with me. On any given day, my order would look something like this:Guero Sea Change Odelay Mutations Mellow GoldGuero and Sea Change rarely move from their slots. Guero is Beck at the absolute top of his game. He combines the emotional depth of Sea Change with the sonic backdrop of Odelay. The songs are catchy, quirky, and brilliant.Sea Change is the album that changed my view of Beck. Before it, I had a couple of his CDs and liked them well enough but was not a huge fan. Sea Change is the album where he became an artist. It is tremendous. The lyrics, the vocals, and the arrangements are all first rate. This album breaks my blackened little heart when I listen to it. Rarely has the wasteland of a failed relationship sounded this compelling over the course of an entire album.The lyrics and the vocals surprised me most. Having listened to Odelay, I was aware of his abilities to create fascinating soundscapes. His lyrics usually came across as gibberish presented in a hiphop slacker style. Sea Change changed that. His vocals have probably never been this expressive and his words this poetic. Sea Change is a rich album worthy of repeated listens. Among my favorite moments on the disc are the final moments of "Paper Tiger" (actually, I love the entire song, but these lines minister to me):There's one road to the morningThere's one road to the truthThere's one road back to civilizationBut there's no road back to you.You have to hear the mournful sound of his voice and the alluring string/guitar bed underneath it to experience the full potency, but even in print those lines communicate the emotions powerfully.That passage, and there are several more like it, is a far cry from "I gotta couple of couches/sleep on the love seat." Don't get me wrong. I like "Loser" and I like the looser side of Beck's musical persona. He became a major musical figure with Mellow Gold and Odelay. If he never made Sea Change, he would still be a genius because of how great that material is. He could have continued making records in that vein and disappointed no one, but Sea Change revealed a depth I did not know he had. He can make you get up and dance with two turntables and a microphone, but he can also move you with an acoustic guitar and sumptuous strings.Billions of breakup songs have been written, and most of them are bad. Pain can make for great art but it can also give you "How You Remind Me" by Nickelback. How many folders do you think those atrocious lyrics were scrawled on in junior high schools across the country? That was my first thought the first time I heard that unspeakably bad song. Chad "Grizzly Adams" Kroeger bared his sole and it was stupid.Beck manages to write not only a great breakup song, but a great breakup album. I know what you're thinking. Could it possibly be as good as Nick Lachey's "What's Left of Me"? If you asked that question and you meant it, stop reading this review now. Better yet, throw away your MP3 player, your CDs, and tear out your car stereo. Stop listening to music. Stop buying music. Never reproduce.Right-thinking people of the cosmos would already own Sea Change and know that it compares favorably with arguably the best breakup album of all time, Dylan's Blood on the Tracks. Unfortunately, Sea Change has sold under one million copies, so there are not enough right-thinking people in the cosmos. What is wrong with you people? Every single one of you has had your ass dumped at some point. You need music to nourish your wounded soul! Without it, you write bad poetry and that bad poetry sometimes becomes bad music like Nick Lachey and Nickelback. That's right. I contend if someone would have sent Nick a copy of Sea Change when Jessica Simpson tossed his ass to the curb (or vice versa, because who really gives a fuck?), we might have been spared one more bad album polluting the "L" section of your favorite music store.Something better than this? Not likely.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 012: The Byrds - There is a Season

Josh Hathaway — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 23:44:44 EST

For years, I have read of the lineage between The Byrds and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, but the two Byrds songs I knew, “Mr. Tambourine Man” and “Turn! Turn! Turn! (There is a Season)” were not enough to give me a true sense of the connection or even prove its existence. As I rediscovered Petty's work (Highway Companion, Conversations...Petty, live review, Confessions 001), my curiosity about The Byrds grew. An entire wall of our apartment is devoted to my musical curiosities. It was time to add another "brick" to that wall.I learned from The Byrds’ Greatest Hits that I knew more of their songs than I thought I did. Petty has covered “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better” and “So You Wanna Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star,” and I never knew “Eight Miles High,” was a Byrds’ tune. One curiosity settled, a new one born. The ringing sound of the Rickenbacker is one of the unmistakable sonic threads that joins The Byrds and Petty. This first question answered, I found my appetite whetted for more when presented with this sampling of great music. I was now possessed with a new curiosity about The Byrds. Did I mention the altar assembled along one wall of our apartment, devoted to housing the evidence of my musical curiosities?Sadly, Best Buy is the best place to find music in Huntsville. If I want to find anything more obscure than the new Paris Hilton record, I usually have to order it or drive two hours to Nashville. When a man is possessed by the musical curiosity, he does not want to wait 5-7 days on Postal Service. The four-hour round trip to Nashville is not high on the practical scale, either. This means I usually start my hunting at Best Buy even though I know at some point I will become irrationally angry with the experience. Not only do I often have trouble finding what I want, I have to listen to some godawful hiphop rubbish played at unspeakably loud volumes. Yes, I realize how old that makes me sound, but I am writing a review of The Byrds. Besides, I am not opposed to loud music. I still listen to loud music. What I am opposed to is bad music, bad music played loudly, and bad music played quietly. While scouring these shelves of frustration, I stumbled onto There is a Season, the new 99 track, 4-CD/1-DVD box set on sale for the ridiculously good price of $29.99. Even if the box only produces a few new favorites not found on Greatest Hits, this was still a hell of a deal. That’s value! I hated Best Buy 17 percent less for the rest of that day.It turns out there was more than a handful of great new songs on this set. Hell, I found out The Byrds were making great music before they were The Byrds. The best of the gems recorded during early sessions aimed at attracting a record label is the David Crosby-sung “The Airport Song.” Crosby and Roger McGuinn co-wrote this breezy, melancholy song while watching planes at LAX. You get in trouble anytime you anoint a particular artist the inventor of a genre because someone will always find a slightly earlier cut from some obscure outfit who might have made a record that could loosely be fitted in that genre. The Byrds may not have invented either genre, but they are often credited for pioneering two of them. The first, folk-rock, is the sound of the original five-man lineup and takes up the first two discs. The Byrds' version of folk-rock relied heavily on that Rickenbacker guitar and brilliant harmonies. When "Mr. Tambourine Man," the title cut from The Byrds first album, became a #1 hit, Bob Dylan was still building his legend in the folk realm. The Byrds made Dylan electric before The Man himself did. It is a wonderful contradiction that many of these early songs sound both timeless and dated. I am not old enough to have lived the '60s, so my perceptions of that period are informed through the prism of history. The Byrds' sound is vital to the soundtrack of those years. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones got more of the headlines and damn deservedly so, but "Eight Days a Week" does not echo The '60s the way "Eight Miles High" does. These first two discs exceeded my expectations but they failed to surprise me. The band found a winning formula and stayed true to it on their early records, often to delightful effect. Disc Three is the curveball. The second genre The Byrds helped pioneer was country-rock. I had no idea. The steel guitar line in the intro of "You Ain't Going Nowhere," another Dylan cover, introduces not only the song but an entirely new sound. The harmonies from the early records have remained, but the sonic landscape is completely different. By 1968, the Clark(e)s had departed as had David Crosby. Chris Hillman and Roger McGuinn were the last of the originals and at Hillman's suggestion, the legendary Gram Parsons was welcomed into the fold. What followed is either the first or first important country-rock album. Some critics say Sweetheart of the Rodeo was more a Parsons album than a Byrds' album. It seems pointless to debate because regardless of what you call it in terms of genre or who you credit, it is a magnificent record and I loathe country music only slightly less than hip hop rubbish. "Hickory Wind" is the blueprint for bands like The Eagles and America who would later carry the torch for the country-rock movement. It is also one of the best things Parsons ever recorded and one of the highlights on this set.Sweetheart is represented on There is a Season by songs as they appeared on the album as well as some alternate versions. Alternate versions are sometimes hard to distinguish from their more famous counterparts when included on box sets and deluxe editions. That is not the case on Season. The alternate versions from Sweetheart included here feature the late Parsons' lead vocals. When the album was originally recorded, the group planned for Parsons to handle the majority of the lead vocals. There are various reasons as to why that did not happen, among them legal issues surrounding Parsons. While there is nothing wrong with McGuinn's replacement vocals, in most cases they do not hold a candle to Parsons. Some of these versions have been added to the two re-issues of the Sweetheart album which diminishes their value as rarities but has no negative impact on their musical worth. The Parsons' era and these versions are a vital part of the Byrds' musical story.There is a Season provided me with another similarity between Petty and The Byrds. I'll pose it in the form of a question: is it possible for a band to be enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and still be under appreciated? I was not alive during the heyday of The Byrds. Maybe they received the adulation they deserved when these songs were released. I hope they did because these songs still stand up 30 and 40 years later and I am hearing so many of them for the first time. Taking shots at music labels is like shooting fish in a barrel, but sometimes they get one right. There is a Season is one of those rare examples where they did. Does this have every great song the band ever recorded? I don't know, but it has enough to make me want to find out. What started as curiosity has concluded with me becoming a Byrds' fan. I moved from Greatest Hits to There is a Season and have now bought two different versions of Sweetheart of The Rodeo, a story and album worthy of a future Confessions installment. Have I mentioned that wall in our apartment where I keep all the artifacts of my musical investigations?

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 011: Sarah McLachlan - Wintersong... or When A Song Ruins Your Life, Pt. 1

Josh Hathaway — Fri, 8 Dec 2006 14:03:57 EST

It is a bit of a misnomer to call this part one on account of having had a song ruin my day many times before, but today is the first day I have ever made myself stop and write about the experience. I am listening right now to Sarah McLachlan's rendition of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." I have been listening to this song repeatedly for well over an hour. This song may well have ruined my life. It has, at the very least, ruined my day. A full recovery is not expected. The song is on her newly-released Christmas album, Wintersong. I looked forward to Wintersong because Sarah Mc has an angel's voice. Who would not want to listen to Christmas songs sung by an angel? Even if the Christmas spirit does not touch you, the traditional Christmas songs have some of the most beautiful melodies ever. Matching her voice and those songs seemed an absolute winner to me. What could go wrong? There is nothing wrong with Wintersong. The idea of a Sarah McLachlan Christmas album is still a little better than the execution of it on Wintersong, but "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" more than validates it. It really is that good. Just as I will never want nor need to hear anyone other than Nat King Cole sing "The Christmas Song," I never need to hear another version of this song either. That really is one of the great challenges of recording Christmas albums these days. For so many of the classic songs, classic performances have already been recorded. Just as an example, Sarah McLachlan takes a stab at John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War is Over)." We can debate whether or not that is a Christmas classic, but we should all be thankful for a version without Yoko Ono's atonal warble. Still, the definitive version of that song exists. Lennon got it right the first time. All Music Guide reveals 1,085 recordings of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." There may be more. There may be less. I am prepared, without having heard all of them, to declare the Wintersong version the definitive version. Let there not be a 1,086th. What makes her version of this song so special? For starters, the low-key nature of the vocals. Many a golden-voiced diva has attempted these secular and sacred songs and oversung them in the most overwrought, overblown fashion. The lack of nuance in those performances assaults the song (and the listener) rather than interpreting it. On this song, and throughout the album, McLachlan resists the temptation to overdo it. What makes this version of the song so wonderful is the way she phrases it and the slight hint of melancholy in her voice. It might seem odd to praise a little melancholy in such a happy song but it adds a hint of yearning and warmth to it. The wonderful phrasing is evident within its first 30 seconds. Any deviation from a melody so ingrained in our collective consciousness is going to cause you to take note, but this not just any deviation. When she phrases the familiar refrain "faithful friends who are dear to us/gather near to us once more," the slightly mournful sound in her voice colors these lines. Those words are usually sung with anticipation; that next year’s gathering is a certainty. McLachlan sings them with hope, but also a hint of reservation. The sound of her voice allows us to imagine circumstances where next year might not be such a given when she delivers that next stanza, “through the years we all will be together/if the fates allow.” This stirred thoughts of people wondering if this Christmas might be their last Christmas with a loved one. That might sounds a little morbid. Besides, the lyrics talk about troubles being a million miles away. McLachlan’s performance allowed me to imagine a family embracing this Christmas, and hoping maybe to get one more just like it. Of course, death is not the only thing that comes between our loved ones and us at Christmas. While sitting at my desk at work listening to this song, I thought of our friends in South Carolina. Last year, we traveled to Columbia to spend time with them during the Christmas season. We plan to make that trip again this year as part of an ongoing tradition. We had hoped to see them in November, but real life intervened as it so often does. There may be years we cannot make that trip. I am thankful we did last year. I am hoping "the fates allow" a trip in just a few weeks. This song, one I have heard a thousand times, reached me in a new way through the power of an impossibly beautiful voice. I realize this does not qualify was a balanced review of Wintersong, but the fact I listened to "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" more than 50 times today should tell you something. Actually, it should tell you a lot although likely more about me than the record. I will let you tell me what this says about me in the comments. As for Wintersong, I can guarantee you this record will come off the shelves every year, even if it is just to listen to "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" another 50 times. It may have ruined my day, but made my holiday. We have a new holiday gold standard.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 010: Two Albums From Norah Jones - One Real, One Imagined

Josh Hathaway — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 13:06:10 EST

I spent the morning listening to Sarah McLachlan's Christmas album, Wintersong. She would probably call it a holiday album. I call it a Christmas album. Whatever. Anyroad, Sarah Mc has for years been one of those voices who could coax $15 out of me to listen to her sing the phone book. Her voice is not of this earth. That she happens to be able to package strong songwriting with that voice seems impossibly unfair to the rest of us mere mortals. A Christmas album from Sarah McLachlan seemed like a great idea. The execution of the idea? Good, but not great. A funny thought went through my mind as I was listening to her version of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," which is the best moment on the disc. "Damn, I wish Norah Jones would make a Christmas album." As great as Sarah Mc sounds singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," she would be no match for Norah's version. I can hear it in my head right now. Norah Jones' voice and that song were meant for each other. Hell, she could just record that song 12 times and release a CD and I would buy it. Toss in "Blue Christmas," "White Christmas," "I'll Be Home for Christmas," "Silent Night," "O, Holy Night" and the back of a Campbell's Soup label and you have yourself the first essential Christmas CD since... Nat King Cole? Close your eyes and imagine that voice and the words, "I'll be home for Christmas/if only in my dreams." If you can operate heavy machinery with that aural picture in your head, it is quite possible you have no soul. There is a warm melancholy in her voice that expresses loneliness in a beautiful and appealing way. It cannot be explained. It has to be experienced. She was born to make this record, and even my money-grubbing, capitalist cold heart will not try to score a percentage of the royalties if she makes this record by next year. I will consider my small role in the project a service to humanity so profound that profiting from it would be obscene. This is what Christmas needs and yet we will not be getting it. Chalk another one up for racist, white America. Not only will we not be getting it, we won't even be getting her new album in time for Christmas. The Christmas gods are usually pretty good to me. There is never a shortage of "must have" music being released this time of year. The two releases I am most interested in have already hit store shelves and are comfortably resting on my shelves (box sets from John Lee Hooker and Buddy Guy). The third, Jones' new album, will not be in stores until January. Talk about getting Scrooged! The music industry can hardly contain its evil desire to pack as many releases into a six-week window and yet this is the album that has been pushed until next year? The world can wait for new Gwen Stefani records! Norah Jones' next album might well bring peace in our lifetime. Blue Note, let my people go! Be a trendsetter! Everyone moves release dates backward. Move Norah's forward and do humanity a favor. The irony in all of this is the album's title. Are you ready for this? Not Too Late. That is just a big bowl of wrong. It kind of hurts my feelings. Okay, I have gotten carried away. I can admit it. So, in addition to a release date of January 30, here is what we know about Not Too Late: it is 13 tracks, all of which were written or co-written by Jones. The album was co-produced by Jones and her bass player (and boyfriend) Lee Alexander. Collaborators, both new and old, include: Adam Levy, Jesse Harris, Kevin Breit, and Robbie McIntosh, drummer Andy Borger, and singer Daru Oda. Other album guests include singer M. Ward, organist Larry Goldings, and Kronos Quartet cellist Jeffrey Zeigler. Not Too Late Tracklisting: Wish I Could Sinkin' Soon The Sun Doesn't Like You Until The End Not My Friend Thinkin’ About You Broken My Dear Country Wake Me Up Be My Somebody Little RoomRosie's Lullaby Not Too Late The Christmas album does not exist (yet) and we still have a three-month wait for Not Too Late. As crushing as that is, we are going to have to hang in there together. My suggestion? Queue up these gems from her first two records while we wait for her third and keep your fingers crossed for that Christmas album! Come Away With Me: "Don't Know Why" – The song that started it all for her. Sometimes a song can be a hit and years later no one remembers why. "Don't Know Why" should have been an even bigger hit. "Seven Years" – Devastating. I manage to use that word often and sparingly at the same time. Four years later and this song kills me every single time."Feelin' the Same Way" – Not a burner, by any means, but a little more uptempo than the first two. I like the way this one shuffles along."Come Away With Me" – Gorgeous, is what this one is. This one is gorgeous even without the personal connection I have to it. Okay – since you asked: this song was played at my brother's wedding reception and as it was playing, he danced with his stepdaughter while his wife danced with her son, his stepson. I think what is best about it is how it happened so naturally. There was no contrivance. It just... happened. Most people at the reception had the good sense to get off the dance floor and let the four of them have that moment. There were a couple tools who did not. Idiots."I've Got to See You Again" – This song smolders. Great, great song. There really is nothing wrong with any of the songs on Come Away With Me. Maybe you should just listen to the entire album. Feels Like Home: This album, for me, was not quite as consistent as Come Away With Me. There are no bad songs on the record and the best moments here are as good as the best moments on CAWM. Here are a few of them: "Be Here to Love Me" – This one features cameos from members of The Band. What a great song!"Toes" – Charming, simple, elegant. She makes it sound so easy."What Am I To You?" – She can pull songs like this off because of that natural sound of loneliness in her voice. "Those Sweet Words" – Even though she plays some fine piano, I tend to like songs like this which emphasize acoustic guitar as a musical backdrop for her voice."Sunrise" – You don't have to reinvent yourself when you are great at what you do and if you have good songs.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 009: I Had a Friday Morning Listen, Too

Josh Hathaway — Fri, 6 Oct 2006 13:44:38 EDT

Sir Saleski has, for three years and counting now, written the excellent Friday Morning Listen column on his own site and Blogcritics. Beginning this year, he brought that column to TheMondoProject. The idea behind the column, according to him, really is as simple as the title. The columns are rarely pre-ordained. They are about whatever it is he was in the mood to listen to on his way to work on a Friday morning as he looked forward to the weekend. I had one of those moments today - not too dissimilar from an experience I wrote about some weeks ago. I woke up with a song in my head and just had to listen to it. I have now listened to that song a couple of times and I am now listening to its parent album. I was awakened this morning by the sounds of "Ride a Black Swan" by Zwan reverberating through my head. I do not remember when I listened to this song or this album last. For some reason, the music library in my head dialed this up this morning and I am glad it did. America, you blew it on this one. Mary, Star of the Sea should have sold 2 million copies. There should have been hit singles on the modern rock charts. This is a seriously great record and practically no one heard it. It's a damn shame, too. One of the things I planned on doing with this Confessions series of mine was writing about albums that slipped through the cracks in one way or another, for one reason or another. I liked this album the first time I listened to it. Love came a little later but not much. The more I tore into Mary, the more I found myself loving these songs. I heard this album dismissed by some as being PumpkinsLite (Zwan was ex-Smashing Pumpkin Billy Corgan's first post-Pumpkins project). It is difficult for me to imagine somebody missing the point more. It is only PumpkinsLite if you picked up Mary expecting another Smashing Pumpkins record. Maybe I am able to separate Zwan from Pumpkins so easily because I was only a casual fan of Smashing Pumpkins. I liked them, I didn't love them. There is so much to love on this record if you listen to it on its own merits. It is not a perfect record but is a very good one that deserved a kinder fate. "Ride a Black Swan" might be the best anthem Billy Corgan has ever written. Note --- I did not say best song. Although now that I mention it, I would place it next to anything Corgan has ever written and recorded and not feel the least bit embarrassed about it. It is nowhere near as excessive as "Jesus, I/Mary Star of the Sea," but there are distinct movements throughout the song. Those movements and the song's message are bathed in some amazing layers of guitars and driven by the powerhouse work of drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. Guitars ring, chime, and soar. Chamberlin's drumming is impossibly propulsive. Corgan's vocals are not only not grating - they are sometimes pretty and powerful. Not long after Mary was released, Corgan told Rolling Stone, "Faith is the great energy -- as long as one has faith, you're willing to try, to take another chance." Many of the songs on Mary explore the idea of faith - hell, one song is actually called "Declarations of Faith." Musically, Mary is more interesting to me than Corgan's latter day goth/electronica experiments. These songs are not experimental- they're just good. The churning, thundering guitar noise of Corgan's past are replaced with shiny layers of bright guitar. One has to wonder if his stint touring with New Order might have rubbed off on him as he wrote and recorded these songs. Where Smashing Pumpkins could be described as a hard rock band, Zwan is simply rock. Mary, Star of the Sea will likely be the last we hear from Zwan. Corgan carries huge amounts of hatred for the other band members (with the exception of longtime collaborator Chamberlin) and he is now re-forming the Pumpkins. Corgan said there are still boxes of tapes from these sessions. I might be the only man in America who hopes these see the light of day, but I do. The new Pumpkins record may be great. I will certainly want to hear it. I just wish Zwan did not have to die for the Pumpkins to be re-born.Some of my favorite tracks: "Lyric" - This is an ideal opening song for the album. Mary is not a concept album, per se, but the theme of faith comes up time and time again. "Lyric" introduces that theme beautifully. "Honestly" - This was the first single from the album. I cannot believe it did not catch on with more people. "Ride a Black Swan" - Epic without being overblown, this is the masterpiece of the album. "Heartsong" - One of the softer moments on the album, I have never been a fan of Corgan as balladeer but this is a good song. "Endless Summer" - I was never a New Order fan, but this one always sounded to me like one where Billy indulged his new wave leanings. "Yeah!" - I can see why most people would listen to this and think it is stupid, but I really like it. I like that Corgan sings a lot of this in his lower register. I like the chime-y guitars. "Come With Me" - This simple, spare, pop song is the perfect palette cleanser fter the sprawl of "Jesus, I." This was a clever choice to end the album.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 008: More Money Than Sense

Josh Hathaway — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 10:25:54 EDT

I have been working a lot of extra hours the past few months. Those extra hours have come with a few extra dollars attached and I have dutifully spent them... mostly on music.I will spare you all the details but it seems those extra [paid] hours are about to be a thing of the past. So will the extra dollars. I will be returning to my usual, and by no means meager, music budget. I drove to Nashville (2 hours) after work to drop the last of my overtime money on music.This excellent installment (and the conversation it sparked) of Sir Brewster's Bootleg Country series revealed I had a certain hole in my music collection.One of the first purchases I made was R.E.M.'s Fables of the Reconstruction. I am listening to it now. I knew several of these songs (from their inclusion on Eponymous and having hung out with more than one R.E.M. fan over the years).I was not on the ground floor of the whole R.E.M. thing. I was 10-years old when Murmur was released (sorry, Sir Saleski, but it is true) and my parents had strict rules about the kind of music we were allowed to hear. Besides, I am not sure the band had reached small, middle-class Iowan elementary schools. I began asserting my musical independence around the time of their commercial peak, but when other kids were buying Document, I was buying Girls, Girls, Girls. Fortunately, I grew out of it.The point of that story is to explain how I could have gotten so many of R.E.M.'s albums without owning Fables of the Reconstruction until last night. I picked up the band's trail beginning with Automatic for the People - which remains the best thing the band has ever or will ever record. I tried to move forward with the releases that followed while at the same time catching up with what they had done before. What can I say? I got most of it. I like most of it (and love plenty of it). Somehow, I managed to miss this one.Actually, I have a pretty good idea how I missed this one. One of the flaws in the way I consume music is I get a lot and I go through it fast. Some albums and some artists get careful study. Some only get cursory listens. A day like today, when I find myself listening to a very good album I missed out on, reminds me there are times to savor rather than gulp.I breezed through R.E.M.'s back catalog. Some of it stuck, some of it never registered. I went through it all so fast I had trouble distinguishing one jangle record from another. I thought I already had Fables- I knew some of the major songs and just assumed I had already bought it. Ooops. I was wrong. When I realized I was wrong, I told myself to be on the lookout for it but I am easily distracted and I forgot about it. Brewster's piece and the conversation that followed have sent me into a major R.E.M. phase and I pulled the trigger last night.I mentioned Fables as being one of the first purchases. There were others. This is the part where the dollar:sense ratio goes out of whack. Some of you will be inclined to laugh at me when you read the following. Know only these two things:1) You're right and I can't argue with you.2) I don't care. I don't care that you're right. I don't care that you're laughing.Rhino released deluxe editions of all of R.E.M.'s Warner Brothers releases (Orange, Out of Time, Automatic for the People, Monster, New Adventures in Hi-Fi, Up, Reveal, and Around the Sun). I already owned the deluxe Automatic and last night I purchased Monster, New Adventures, and Up.What's so funny about that? I already owned those albums! There is, to my knowledge, nothing different about the CDs I bought from the ones I already had. I thought Automatic and the rest of the albums in this series had at least been re-mastered when I purchased it. It turns out I was wrong. Yet, for some reason, I bought an additional three deluxe versions.If the albums are the same, what did I get for my money besides duplicate copies of an album? Each set comes with a bonus DVD. The bonus DVD contains a surround sound version of the album playable on any DVD player, a DVD-Audio version of the album which can only be heard on DVD players capable of reading that layer, and a few other meaningless trinkets.I cannot explain why I wanted these fucking things. I spent a lot of money re-buying these albums- more than it cost to buy them a first time. I could have done wise things with that money. I almost said wiser, but there is nothing wise about what I did. I wanted the deluxe editions and bought them.Here is where things get funnier. My mind is not often a great place to be but every once in awhile it tries to bail me out. I listened to my original copy of Monster on the way to Nashville to buy these fancy versions. I could swear the new version sounded better than the old version. It cannot and I am sure it does not. It's the same fucking CD. How can one sound better than the other? It is not possible. My mind is playing tricks on me to try to save face and I am content to go along with the hoax. Ignorance is bliss. It is also expensive.I wouldn't have it any other way.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 007: Guster, Part II

Josh Hathaway — Thu, 13 Jul 2006 17:10:35 EDT

Stop what you are doing. Get in your car. If you're already in your car you don't have to stop what you are doing. You may remain in your car. Drive to your nearest music retailer. Buy Guster's Keep it Together and Ganging Up on the Sun. If they do not have these CDs at your retailer, throw a brick through their window and race to a computer and order these CDs. Then, go to iTunes and download the following songs: "Jesus on the Radio" from Keep it Together (20) "Amsterdam" from Keep it Together (14)"One Man Wrecking Machine" from Ganging Up on the Sun (8)"Ruby Falls" from Ganging Up on the Sun (8) "Dear Valentine" from Ganging Up on the Sun (9) You might be asking yourself why you are paying to download these songs from iTunes when you just ordered the CDs (assuming your music retailer now has a brick where their window used to be). There is a very good answer for this. You must not allow one more day of your life to pass without hearing these songs! Then, the albums will arrive and you can enjoy the many other wonderful songs on these wonderful albums.I understand I am being awfully free with your hard-earned money. If you have never believed a word I have said, believe me now. These records will make your schlong (or your rack if you are sans schlong) bigger. These records will make your ass tighter and your stomach smaller. These songs will achieve peace in our lifetime and feed the hungry. You will be a better person by 221%! I can prove it. I wrote an article in the June issue of Scientific Proof Magazine. I would not steer you wrong. The birds will sing. The children will dance. You must do this, and do it now. So you still need convincing? Just know, while you are stalling, the bits you want larger could be larger and the regions you want shrunk could already be smaller had you just listened to me. Two or three kids starved while you resisted. But, if convincing is needed, allow me to provide the persuasion. What makes these songs terrific? I discussed the Ganging Up on the Sun songs with Sir Saleski in our collaborated Fanboy piece. If you have already read that, you should already own Ganging Up on the Sun. If you have not done so, there will be a refresher course. For now, let's start with the pair from Keep it Together. "Jesus on the Radio" - This one is easy is to love. It's only two minutes. The banjo and acoustic guitar rollick. The melody is wonderful, but is the brilliant harmonies that force you to put this song on repeat, repeat, repeat. It's the simplest recipe but it makes the finest damn song your ears will hear all day. You don't have to work at it. It's pleasing to the ears. The lyrics, well, I admit there is nothing spectacular about them. The phrase "Jesus on the radio" is sung one time but not really connected to anything. They could have said "Martin on the radio" or "Junior on the radio" or any other two syllable name. The lyrics are not nonsense, they just don't matter. Why don't they matter? Did I mention the wonderful melody and the brilliant harmonies? In the time it took you to read this you should have been able to listen to the full song. Do you feel that twitch in your finger? You know, the one that wants to press/click repeat? Get used to it. You might need to sue Guster for giving you carpal tunnel syndrome. This and many of their other songs will cause this same uncontrollable urge. "Amsterdam" - Apparently this one was something of a hit on alternative/college radio. Huntsville does not have a decent alternative/college radio station. We used to get an okay one out of Birmingham and a pretty good one out of Nashville, but not anymore. So I had never heard this song until I bought the CD. Fuckin' Huntsville. "Amsterdam" relies a little less on harmony than "Jesus on the Radio" but is no less catchy. There are little harmonic flourishes but this song is built more around music than voice. The chorus, though -- what a wondrous thing it is and what a lost art it is becoming. AC/DC is my favorite example of this (and credit must be given to my friend "M" for pointing this out). An example: "Hard as a rock!Hard as a rock! Well, it's harder than a rock! Hard as a rock! Well, it's harder than a rock!" Let's take a look at one more from AC/DC: "I keep a stiff upper lip And I shoot from the hip I keep a stiff upper lip And I shoot And I shoot Shoot from the hip" I like AC/DC. They are a no-frills rock band with a classic Saturday night sound and they are good for what they do but those are not choruses! AC/DC is not the only band guilty of this. I like the song "All Because of You" by U2 (from their How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb CD). "M," a more devoted U2 fan than I, hates it because of this: "All because of you,All because of you,All because of you, I am..." I like the song but he is right. That is a shit chorus. That is actually not a chorus at all. "M" taunted me about that on multiple occasions. What could I say? He was right about the chorus, just not the song. Then I got my revenge. "M," in addition to being a knowledgeable U2 fan, is also a huge Springsteen fan. He likes a song called "Loose Change" (which is on the Tracks box set). The refrain of "Loose Change:" "Loose change in my pocket,Loose change in my pocket" I rest my case. It should be noted not every song needs to have a killer chorus to be a good song. Personally, I like songs with great choruses and I also like "All Because of You." A chorus is not a necessity but if a songwriter is going to write a chorus, it should be a good one. You want an example of a good chorus? Check out "Amsterdam:" "I'm gonna write you a letterI'm gonna write you a bookI wanna see your reactionI wanna see how it looksFrom way up on your cloudWhere you've been hiding outAre you getting somewhere?Or did you get lost in Amsterdam?" That, along with the fabulously catchy music and vocals, is a chorus. Rejoice, all ye fans of great pop music, there are still songwriters who understand the concept of a great chorus. The music is a little louder in the mix than the vocals. This is up-tempo, guitar pop. There are layers and layers of guitars, a trick their earlier songs did not employ. Some of the guitars have that jangle of early R.E.M. while others have a big, rave-up sound that, when combined with a never-ending groove, will force you to move some part of your body while you listen. Don't fight it when you get the urge to air-guitar that Pete Townshend windmill trick. Let the moment take you. Be the Pete. Dial 9-1-1 if you are sitting still while listening to this song because your ass is about to die. Segue alert! Segue alert! It is really a bad thing when I have this much energy and have yet to drink my first caffeinated beverage. I am actually a little scared. I think I might explode at some point. I blame Guster. Let's add hyperactivity to the carpal tunnel lawsuit. "One Man Wrecking Machine" – Let me begin by being a broken record -- great chorus. They do something ingenious with the chorus on this song. It has certainly been done before, but it is done really well here. The first few times through the song, while traveling back through time as the song does, this is your chorus: "I want to pull it apart and put it back together,I want to relive all my adolescent dreams,Inspired by true events on movie screens,I am a One Man Wrecking Machine" When the song returns to the present, this is your chorus: "I tried to pull it apart and put it back together,No point in reliving all my adolescent dreams,Inspired by true events on movies screens,I am a One Man Wrecking Machine." Some artists would have repeated the same chorus despite the shift in the song. Guster could have done that and this song would still be great. That they did not take the lazy way out only makes the song that much better. "Ruby Falls" – Some songs go seven minutes (and longer) because the artist did not know when to stop. I get tired when I listen to songs like that. There is no hard and fast rule when it comes to song lengths. Compact is probably the best approach most of the time. There are only a handful of artists that do "epic" well. You won't find many epics on a Guster album. "Ruby Falls" is an exception and it is a wonderful exception. "Ruby Falls" is seven minutes because it should be- because it has to be. It almost plays as a mini-suite with distinct movements. It is all very cinematic in sound and scope and when you get to the part where they sing, "Two birds give out a song," you have reached sonic nirvana. "Dear Valentine" – I am a drum snob even though I have no training as a drummer. Some drummers do things that turn my neck into an accordion and cause me great fits of anger. One of the things I hate is a drummer who cannot leave his cymbals alone. The predictable "crash" causes me fits of uncontrollable rage. The perpetual pinging feels like gnats flying around in my face. The persistent patter in "Dear Valentine" won't go down as my favorite thing but it does feel right for the song. It amuses me when an artist will do something I normally hate and I like the song anyway. "Dear Valentine" wraps a great chorus inside the harmonies of "Jesus on the Radio" and the jangle pop of "Amsterdam." No wonder I love it. I am dismissive of pop music in my columns and in conversation because of what pop music has become. In a perverse way, Guster is one of those bands that makes it worse. This is what pop music could be: hooks and choruses and harmonies and sentiments rather than silly sentimentality. Pop music sucks but it shouldn't and doesn't have to. Guster is living proof. By the way, those numbers in the parentheses above reflect the number of times I listened to each of those songs while writing this installment of Confessions of a Fanboy. Become a better person, save the children, buy some Guster.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 006: Guster - Ganging Up on the Sun

Josh Hathaway — Wed, 28 Jun 2006 18:07:29 EDT

This week's Confessions column is a special edition. Special in that it has taken far too long to get a new installment written, and special in that there is a guest writer helping me with this week's album. Boys and girls, say hello to Mark Saleski. It is appropriate that Saleski join me in this week's installment because he has welcomed me to be a part of his Friday Morning Listen and because he is directly responsible for my being in possession of the album we are going to discuss. He wrote a magnificent review of "One Man Wrecking Machine," the first single from Guster's Ganging Up on the Sun. I loved the review and was intrigued by his description of the song. I was not the only one who noticed this review. An editor for American Songwriter noticed it and commissioned him to write a Guster article for the magazine (it's in stores now, go buy 10 or 12 issues -- it's the one with Jewel on the cover). Saleski is a man of many contacts, he is sneaky powerful, and managed to get me on the same mailing list he is on. Last Monday, a package containing two CDs arrived in the mail. One was Madonna's new live CD/DVD. The other was Ganging Up on the Sun. I was clearly more interested in the Guster. I am pretty sure the same can be said for Saleski. DJRadiohead: If I were a representative of Reprise records, Guster's label, I would call a staff meeting and I would give them the Glengarry Glen Ross speech. I would tell every rep in the room I am going to kill and then punish if "One Man Wrecking Machine" is not a Top 10 single on every college rock station in America and if it does not reach the Top 40 on the Billboard pop charts. That is how good this song is. That is how much I believe in this song. That is how much I want every person to be able to hear it. That is the great shame in the state of radio today. That is the maximum number of sentences I want to begin with the word "that." "One Man Wrecking Machine" combines a great story and a universal theme and bathes them in great songcraft to create a catchy song with something to say. It is sad we have lowered our expectations to the point where a song like this is the exception and not the rule. The kids would probably like it but this, sort of like the Glen Phillips record of the last installment, is pop music for grown ups. This song will minister to you if you are far enough removed from high school to have some insight as to what has gone right and, more importantly, wrong since then. I cannot imagine a better lyric will be penned this year. Mark Saleski: It's true. I heard "One Man Wrecking Machine" and had one of those moments where it seemed like the rest of the world fell away for a time. Great music does that to me. It triggers a sort of unexplainable resonation. When I spoke to Guster's Ryan Miller, we tossed this idea around a little and came to a fairly decent description for this phenomenon: when you first hear a melody or chorus and that musical fragment seems both familiar and entirely new. It's a weird thing. For me, the melody of "One Man Wrecking Machine" made absolutely perfect sense, as if it couldn't have sounded any other way.And here's some even better news, the rest of this record contains many more "new classics." DJRadiohead: As much as I love "One Man Wrecking Machine," I think the masterpiece of the album is "Ruby Falls." I am still trying to figure out how this one got left off Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Maybe it is because Elton John and Bernie Taupin did not write it. They could have. They should have. What a terrific song. Ryan Miller's vocals soar the way Sir Elton's used to in the '70s when he was famous for his music. Leave it to my filth-obsessed mind to turn the song's structure into something sexual. When I listen to it, though, it does make sense. Gentle vocal and a slight, electric guitar figure is the clothed kissing. Some organ is added 30 seconds in -- we're getting a little more serious about this and the clothes are being flung at the cats to get them to leave the room. (Who can make love in front of their pets? Seriously.) One minute in, the full ensemble is added in the form of bass, drum, and an electric guitar with a little more heft. Copulation has commenced. There is even some screeching guitar and keyboard along the way so it sounds like we are having a good time. The song climaxes into a glorious eruption of harmonies and then it takes a deep breath. Playing the character of afterglow and the essential post-coital smoke is a wonderful muted trumpet. This use of trumpet is brilliant, giving the song a touch of Sinatra-like cool and class. A lot more class than my description, I suppose. "Ruby Falls" is an amazing piece of songcraft and it probably deserves a classier description than what I just gave it. Help me out, Saleski. What do you think of "Ruby Falls?" Mark Saleski: Not being a lyrics guy, I find the words to "Ruby Falls" to be somewhat opaque. Not an unusual thing for me, really. So what happens is that I end up experiencing things completely outside of the writer's context, sort of like paging through a poetry anthology and reading random pairs of lines. What does "the afterlife is all in the end/the afterlife is ours in the end" mean inside of the song? I have no idea. It surely means something to me. But...the meaning is secondary to the gorgeous music. Beginning slowly and pensively and then expanding out in an explosion of electric guitar, "Ruby Falls" rocks along but does not telegraph what's to come. And what might that be? The section you describe as "post-coital" pulls in Guster's love of both vocal harmony and inner detail, what with the backing voice of Melissa Mathes. When that sweet trumpet solo is winding the song down, it's a little reminiscent of Pink Floyd's "The Great Gig In The Sky" pulled back a few notches. This band's focus on melody is what seems to grab me every time. I'm now thinking of the chorus to "Dear Valentine". The melody is again instantly recognizable and the vocal layering turns the song into an instant anthem. You can just imagine it in concert as the set-closer. DJRadiohead: Yes, excellent! I am only occasionally a lyrics guy. Over time, the words will seep into my head but "Ruby Falls" sounds so amazing I find myself not particularly interested in learning them straight away. You make a good point, too, about not telegraphing their moves. The unexpected nature of the sonic journey through "Ruby Falls" is stunning. I am so happy you bring up "Dear Valentine." That is perhaps my third favorite song on this album. The chorus reminds me of something you brought up when we were discussing "One Man Wrecking Machine." These harmonies have always been here yet they still sound vital and new. "Dear Valentine" is pure pop and it is those harmonies that elevate this song to being something special. This is another one that, given the chance, could do well on radio. And again with the trumpet. A marvelous pop song. Mark Saleski: What amazes me about all of these tunes, and I suppose Guster in general, is that the melodies drive the rest of the song construction. When asked which activity got the songwriting ball going, words or music, both Ryan and Adam replied "Music!" without hesitation. A melody, chord progression or other musical bit is fleshed out to a full song, then lyrics are written. The result seem effortless to me. Surely the words, phrases and sentences have their own musicality, but in the case of a well-crafted pop song the marriage of the two worlds, it would seem that there might be a chance for a collision. Not here. So when I listen to a song like "The Captain", I can't imagine those words and that melody existing outside of the song. A neat trick, I think. DJRadiohead: You make a good point. "The Captain" is one that had to grow on me and by that I mean I had to hear it a second time. The rockabilly music and the (I know this is getting repetitive) harmonies sold me on this one. Back to your point, I am often amazed by the way Radiohead treats Thom Yorke's voice as just one more powerful instrument to use in the construction of a song and the lyrics just one more layer beyond that. Take a song like "Manifest Destiny." The whimsical, galloping piano just would not sound right with any other words even though the words were afterthoughts. Then, just when you think you have the song figured out, these beautiful, Beach Boys-esque harmonies erupt towards the end of the song. I swear I hear Carl Wilson when I listen to it. People use the phrase "arts and crafts" like they are two separate things and I guess they sometimes can be. That said, and I know there are exceptions, art needs craftsmanship and craftsmanship is a lot more exciting when there is some artistry added to it. That is what Guster has done so well on Ganging Up on the Sun. Mark Saleski:I can almost agree with your last sentiment. The one counterexample that comes to mind is more "blunt" (for lack of a better word) music like what The Ramones did. I don't know what the origin of the following is, but it always makes me laugh: Fuck Art, Let's Dance! What's interesting is that for me, songs as completely different as "I Wanna Be Sedated" and "One Man Wrecking Machine" can draw out the same response in me...a kind of emotional swelling.This all points to the fact that there's something universal lurking in a great pop tune -- and though we've been trying to describe it, I don't know that we can really get there. DJRadiohead: To your first point, The Ramones made compact, sturdy songs with catchy pop hooks -- tell me that is not art and craft. They might not be in equal measure and no one says they must be. I contend both art and craft are present. They might not be highbrow or ornate but those are some well-crafted pop songs. I win! It is not easy to bring this discussion to a close because it feels like there is still a lot to say -- we have been yammering on for 1,700 words and have not even touched upon half of the album! Even if we did continue this long enough for me to tell you how much I like "Empire State" or that I think "C'mon" is a lot of fun or that "Satellite" was probably the first song that caught my attention when I listened to this album it would not be enough. If I did that I would have to stand aside for you to respond or to go off in another direction entirely which would cause me to go back and listen some more and then I would find something else and... I would still feel like there is more to say.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .

Confessions of a Fanboy 005: Glen Phillips - Mr. Lemons

Josh Hathaway — Mon, 8 May 2006 17:40:42 EDT

I. I have written recently about albums tied to places and times in my life. Mr. Lemons may well have become one of those albums for me.I received an advance of Mr. Lemons in late February. I have listened to it several times since. I was not quite sure what to make of it at first. I did not fall in love with it right away. It seemed much more like Abulum (his first solo album) and Mutual Admiration Society (his collaboration with Nickel Creek) than Winter Pays for Summer (his previous solo album). Mr. Lemons began to reveal itself to me more and more with repeated listens. I had gone through a litany of comparisons and done my research. I thought knew which path my review was going to take.Just as I was preparing to turn my scribbled listening notes into some sort of coherent review, The Wife to Whom I Am Married received one of those phone calls we fear and dread: Her grandfather's fight against Alzheimer's was nearing its end. The decided upon review went out the window because Mr. Lemons was no longer an album from an artist I respect and whose work I enjoy nor was it the subject of a review I committed to write in exchange for receiving an advance copy. It was now my companion through one of those universal human experiences.From the day of that call to receiving news of his passing through the wake and funeral, two songs stood out for me: "Blindsight" and "Last Sunset." My iPod tells me I have listened to these two songs combined more than 100 times -- mostly within the past week. I believe it.My listening notes for "Blindsight" use words like: bittersweet, delicate, lovely, and tender. At one point I wrote that it sounded "safe" and "like home" and that was just in trying to describe and respond to the music. Many of those same adjectives apply to the lyrics:And I can't see you now But I still know you're here I can reach out And feel you near BlindsightedBe here with me Let me hear you breathing Feel your heart beating Back when we were younger Filled me up like water It's different now but it's strongerThe softness of the song draws you in and before you realize it you are surrounded by the gentle acoustic guitar, plucked bass, warm string accents, and one of Phillips' most moving vocals. The quiet refrain of "Blow the candle out/quiet, quiet" gives the song an almost lullaby quality. "Blindsight" feels like a blanket. The song's final stanza might not have the same reassuring effect as the rest but the overall feeling is warm. The first time I listened to "Last Sunset," these are the words that stood out for me.You never know it might be the last sunset we'll ever see."That's cheerful," I thought to myself. "Nothing like a rumination on impending death to put a smile on your face."It is yet another example of why we should never write a review after only listening to a song or an album once. First impressions can be deceiving. Let's look at the entire chorus:Nodding as the day ends Take it slow as we can You never know it might be The last sunset we'll ever see The last sunset we'll ever seeMakes a big difference, doesn't it? This is not another dreary death song. It's about embracing the time we have. It's about appreciating life, not ticking down the moments until death. It is about as life affirming as a song gets. I suppose the timing comes into play here, too. In addition to familiarity making the words more distinguishable, my mind was more open to what they were trying to say.The instrumentation for "Last Sunset" is similar to that of "Blindsight." The two songs work really well together. I should know. I listened to them back-to-back several times over the past few days. "Last Sunset" adds some wonderful harmony to the mix, most likely provided by co-writer Kim Richey (the album was recorded in Nashville).I won't pretend to know what was going through Phillips' mind when he co-wrote "Last Sunset." I know what was going through mine when I heard it. Naturally, I took to heart the idea of slowing down my life long enough to take things in and to cherish my memories and the people who inhabit my life with me. As I reflect on it more I think part of what struck me is the role Alzheimer's played in the passing of TWTWIAM's grandfather. I know when he passed away but I don't know when he saw his last sunset. I don't know how long he was able to hold on to that memory or any other. "Last Sunset" seems less about trying to hold on to every day as much as it is about holding on to today. The themes and my experiences and the musical textures caused me to dial up a couple of songs from Glen's past: "Windmills," a song by his old band Toad the Wet Sprocket, and "Darkest Hour," which was on Abulum. "Darkest Hour" was written about the final moments of his father's life and the effect that had on him. While the relationships and experiences are not completely analogous, there are shared and similar experiences and I found that comforting. I have never known much about "Windmills" other than I think it is one of the most extraordinary, affecting songs I know. I don't know what it's about but it makes perfect sense to me all the same. "Darkest Hour," "Windmills," and in particular "Last Sunset" and "Blindsight" became my refuge. Those four songs formed a cocoon that gave me distance to reflect. They even helped make sense of those reflections. Other than their connection to Glen Phillips, I am not sure any of these songs really belong together anywhere but in my own mind and on my own iPod. I suppose that is the beauty of music as an individual experience. I don't know if I received the messages Phillips was trying to send with any of those four songs. Whether or not I hear the songs as he intended I did hear something- and it did touch me and it did move me and it did help me. Thanks, Glen.II. If I stopped here I believe I have made my position on Mr. Lemons clear: It is highly recommended listening and it has been an invaluable companion during an intense time. All that and I have only discussed two of the album's 11 songs. There are some other excellent moments on the CD besides "Last Sunset" and Blindsight.""It's different now but it's stronger," the last quoted line from "Blindsight," is a great segue to another standout track on Mr. Lemons, "I Still Love You."I think what I like most about that line and "I Still Love You" as a whole is the idea of love songs for adults. I know it makes me sound old, unhip, and grouchy to pour scorn on the shitty, disposable pop songs that pass for love songs these days. I guess I will have to live with that because I am right. They do suck. Just ask Johnny Cash. He'll back me up on this. Well, he won't now. But he did. In the liner notes to his Love God Murder box set: What has happened to our love language? We have brought it down to three-minute sound bites - sandwiches in cute words that rhyme. And it's a shame that those love songs are played everywhere with no follow-up kisses to seal the words.Lust and passion have their place. Unfortunately, most of today's love songs stop there. They skip from lust and passion to the pain of the tragic, inevitable breakup. The sustaining powers of real, lasting love are apparently not ingredients of hit singles. What a shame. In addition to filling people's head full of rubbish about what love is and isn't, they don't get to hear about some of the best parts. The 'ring of fire' still burns. "It's different now but stronger." Johnny Cash, June Carter Cash, and Glen Phillips get it. "I Still Love You" is a love song for couples with a few years in the books. It is a song about knowing someone well enough to know their flaws and idiosyncrasies and allowing them to know those same things about you. "I Still Love You" is a reminder that youth might be wasted on the young but the adults still have something over on the kids. Some things do get better with age."Everything But You," the album's opening track, is another winner. The first half of the album, in fact, is all pretty terrific. The sound of the album, overall, is pretty stripped down. Most of the songs were constructed with Phillips' acoustic guitar and vocal, with other musicians adding in their parts afterwards. Phillips had likely already decided he would be touring this record solo acoustic (as he did with Abulum) and decided to start the songs there. The spare, rootsy feel of the album suits these songs well. It would be great to have an album that takes equal parts of Lemons/Abulum and WPFS but in the meantime I have all of these on my iPod. I can have the best of both worlds.A dopey cover of Huey Lewis' "I Want a New Drug" opens the second half of the album and for some reason the magic of the first half is never really recaptured beyond this point. Don't let this discourage you from listening to the other tracks. They are good- just maybe a touch below those that open the album. As a sidenote: you can catch Phillips on tour to support Mr. Lemons and see Toad the Wet Sprocket all on the same night. Phillips and Toad will be touring the US this summer. 100 Blogcritics posts and counting. It's been a helluva ride.

Josh Hathaway is Assistant Music Editor for BC Magazine. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster and publishes the BC Network site Confessions of a Fanboy .