Log #123 - Euphonic Electronica: Most Pleasing To The Ear

Euphony In Electronics - One Point One

Laura Marling - Alas I Cannot Swim

Neil Young - Tonight's The Night Live At The Roxy

Efterklang - Magic Chairs

Neil Young - After The Gold Rush

Gram Parsons - GP and Grievous Angel

Beginners start here with EFTERKLANG. They came from the electronica and glitchy camp (with Springer/Tripper in 2003), and they have now reached a strange classical/opera type place (with Leaves: The Colour of Falling in 2016). At their midpoint their (only) third album Magic Chairs from 2010 represented a peak of interesting, yet accessible, music.

The GRAM PARSONS double is straight up country music. It's not my usual sort of music, but these songs like Streets of Baltimore, She, Cry One More Time, Brass Buttons, $1000 Wedding, Love Hurts, and In My Hour Of Darkness, are so good as the melodies are so catchy. Superb songs. Every home should have this CD.

One of NEIL YOUNG's most famous albums Tonight's The Night was taken on the road two years before its release. Seen as a typical act of self sabotage after the success of Harvest had bored him, a live album of the tour has now emerged. The songs are great, the renditions are authentic, and the record represents an important document in Young's history. However the album is probably not different enough from the original studio version to warrant anyone apart from the purists and completists investing. To read more about Tonight's The Night Live At The Roxy read my review here.

I've had the LAURA MARLING in the player a few times now and it's an excellent grower. Slightly more upbeat than some of her later more solo work Alas I Cannot Swim was recorded when Marling was only 17 and became her debut album in 2008. The maturity is astounding.

Final album here is a compilation of excellent electronica from local knob twiddling label Kin-Aesthetic Recordings. Here are the links to the tracks and some pleasing words of explanation from their website:

ELECTRIC APE

Opening with the uneasy heart-beating toll of Theme from The Infernal Machine, rising up with an inescapable stomp-march, its gloriously cold analogue bite might soundtrack a Zombie attack on the outskirts of Detroit.

INWARDS

Tentatively, Limbic System follows. Rebalancing to ambient calm with half-glanced shimmers and softly pulsing neuro-transmissions, the atmosphere breathes and lulls hypnotically, clicking, popping and geiger-counter ticking from within.

ALPHABETS HEAVEN

The intensity is ratcheted up with Amin, a quick-witted liquid beat that modulates, shifts and snaps, with a knowing nod, yet a fresh tenacity. Spacious, sharp, percussive; this circling groove deserves a jittering dancefloor.

ATOMICO

Re-doubling the energetic leap with this almost-lost production from 99', the taut electronic funk-beat of Forever brings an otherworldly depth, ghostly atmospherics and hot-footed drums serenade the divine closing quarter's molten synth-line.

SCARAMANGA SILK

Condensing into electrically charged cloud cover, the tropical ambience of Velvet Raindrops weighs heavy. The sultry electronic climate swells and swirls, threatening to explode, still the rich humidity reigns supreme.

PROPRIO

Finally, we stumble into the drowsy, drunken, distorted synth-groove of Columbo. Off-balance, world-worn, the excavated crooked beat rocks back and forth, strewn with end-of-night murmurs, yet crucially breaking into thumping coherence.

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Log #122 - Neil, Nils and Gram

A fairly quiet week at the Towers this week and a return to some basics with old stalwarts Neil Young (still top of the leaders' charts) and Gram Parsons (his first appearance at the blog!). 

Euphony In Electronics - One Point One

Laura Marling - Alas I Cannot Swim

Fairport Convention - Who Knows Where The Time Goes?

Efterklang - Magic Chairs

Neil Young - After The Gold Rush

Gram Parsons - GP and Grievous Angel

I think After The Gold Rush was the first or second album of Neil Young's I heard. It's probably still one of his most famous along with Harvest and Harvest Moon I guess these days (the latter 1992 album pretty good in the context of much of his output in the previous decade but also very overrated in my opinion and not a patch on its namesake). I remember being fascinated by the minimalist black and white cover of After The Gold Rush, the chunky gold font of the title and the fish eye centre fold view of Young laid across a dressing room sofa in those jeans surrounded by guitars. 

There are some fascinating pictures of famous album cover shoots out there on the www. Here's one of this one with Graham Nash in the foreground, superimposed on the New York street as it is seen today.

Courtesy: http://www.popspotsnyc.com/

The music is an excellent introduction to the full range of Young for those who prefer the original albums over Greatest Hits compilations, with some heavy rock, acoustic guitar and piano (oddly a young Nils Lofgren, a great guitarist in his own right, guested on piano).

We need some simple parts and we’re confident that you’ll find them on the piano.

The Nils Lofgren one is an interesting story and just shows what can happen if you have a bit of front sometimes. Aged 18 he went to a Neil Young gig, blagged himself backstage, met Young, played him a couple of his own songs, got invited back to Young's Topanga Canyon ranch, ended up playing on After The Gold Rush, and having his own debut album produced by Young's producer David Briggs.

Lofgren went on to spend much of his career in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band but has recently returned to playing live with Young again as part of the latest Crazy Horse incarnation.

Gram Parsons of course had a much shorter career than either Young or Lofgren. Having started in The Byrds and then The Flying Burrito Brothers he had become a bit of a poster boy for the new Country Rock by the time of his first solo album GP in 1973. However he was also on a downward drugs and booze spiral (including hanging out with the Rolling Stones in the Mojave Desert and Nellcote) and his second album Grievous Angel was released posthumously the year after after his death in 1973. The two albums have long been available together on one CD.

Gram Parsons hanging out with Keith Richards at Nellcote, France, 1971

[Now is the first time ever I've noticed Gold Rush is two words - not only in this context but anywhere - it has never been one word!]

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Log #97 - A Gang Of Dead Bees

The Guardian's readers recommend series, which I only discovered two weeks ago, is now being withdrawn after 13 years! This was a disappointment for both new contributors like me who was hoping to curate a playlist myself in the future, and stalwarts who have kept the concept going all this time. They will now be congregating over at the similarly formatted song-bar.com .

The final topic was on the subject of The Influence of India and I was chuffed to have one of my nominations (out of over 600) selected for the final play list of 13. It was Krishna Blue by David Sylvian which appears on his Dead Bees On A Cake album.

Here's the Guardian write up:

I certainly couldn't have described it better.

David Sylvian got so good after he went solo with a string of excellent albums. The first one I discovered was (ironically also on a bee theme) Secrets Of The Beehive which I remember most for the stunning acoustic guitar as on this track below.

It's a truly beautiful album and for a few years probably my favourite album of all, and not something I would have expected from the ashes of a pop band like Japan. I am shocked now to remember that that album came out in 1987 as it is one of those I remember clearly where I was at the time on first hearing.

Dead Bees was the follow up coming 12 years later!

1. Bonnie Prince Billy - Master and Everyone
2. David Sylvian - Dead Bees On A Cake
3. Efterklang - Springer
4. Mojo Presents - Return to the Dark Side of the Moon with Wish You Were Here Again
5. Fairport Convention - The History Of
6. Gang of Four - Entertainment!

The Gang of Four album isn't my usual sort of listening. Why have it then? Well, several reasons - I like to try all sorts of new music all the time. And the second reason is it literally fell into my lap. I found it in a bush on my walk home from work the other evening - along with three other Cds - REM's Automatic For The People, Cast's All Change, and Echo and the Bunnymen's Killing Moon The Best Of.

On first listen, as expected, I didn't like the simple Jam / Ramones post punk ranting and scattered guitar strumming over pumping bass. It was made in 1979 and so sounds like it. A few more listens and I am beginning to appreciate the Wilko Johnson like staccato guitar. Late in the album there are even a few variations on the theme.

Gang of Four - mostly like Dr. Feelgood but a hint of new romantic dress sense too

How about this for plaudits though - the album was ranked as fifth Greatest Punk Album of All Time and at number 483 in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. The album was listed by Pitchfork Media as the 8th best album of the 1970s. Kurt Cobain listed it as his 13th favourite album!

Here's his Top 20 for passing interest:

1. Iggy & The Stooges - Raw Power 
2. Pixies - Surfer Rosa 
3. The Breeders - Pod 
4. The Vaselines - Dying for It 
5. The Shaggs - Philosophy of the World 
6. Fang - Landshark 
7. MDC - Millions of Dead Cops 
8. Scratch Acid - Scratch Acid
9. Saccharine Trust - Paganicons 
10. Butthole Surfers - Pee Pee the Sailor 
11. Black Flag - My War 
12. Bad Brains - Rock for Light
13. Gang of Four - Entertainment! 
14. Sex Pistols - Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols 
15. The Frogs - It's Only Right and Natural 
16. PJ Harvey - Dry 
17. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation 
18. The Knack - Get the Knack 
19. The Saints - Know Your Product 
20. Kleenex - "anything by" 

...interesting, not many I'm aware of there.

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Log #96 - Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - A Master For Everyone

I do love Bonnie 'Prince' Billy. Every album I have heard of his is class. This one Master and Everyone is short and soft - it's effortless lo-fi, mostly just acoustic guitar and his whispered voice with occasional fiddle, bass and backing vocal accompaniment. I would imagine the 'Bonnie Prince', real name Will Oldham, is an interesting chap judging by his lyrics and music videos. There is one video in particular that reminds me of one of the scariest scenes in the brilliant first season of True Detective. It's not a track from this album but I'm going to find that video now and compare it with what I recall in True Detective.

And then there's this beauty Hard Life from this album:

Youth and Young Manhood is the debut album from Kings of Leon released in 2003. It's a good rock album with 4 or 5 catchy numbers and a singer in Caleb Followill who possesses an unusually gruff and slurred vocal delivery sounding like someone twice his age. I guess that's the band's main USP albeit not being able to decipher most of the words leads to faint annoyance. They also looked unusual with their long hair and big beards recalling other Southern rock stalwarts like ZZTop and Lynyrd Skynyrd (Kings of Leon hail from Nashville).

Later on the Kings hit the big time, cut their hair, smartened up their look and sound, and lost a bit of their original mystic but with this debut album you can see why they made such an impact early doors.

We all know The Dark Side of the Moon of course, which remains a great listen even given its ubiquity. But less of us have heard the brilliant Easy Stars All Stars reggae cover of the album Dub Side of The Moon or this compilation of covers presented by Mojo magazine.

This Mojo compilation has some really interesting interpretations of these well worn classics like this one from Matt Berry...

Or this back to basics cover of Money by The Pineapple Thief...

Additionally the CD also collects covers of Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here too... Lia Ices interpretation of the title track is particularly impressive breathing new life into this well known song:

Efterklang remain one of my favourite bands despite their latest album taking them a bit off the rails in my opinion. Tripper is officially their debut album from 2004 although it is now often twinned with the earlier (and now extended) EP Springer released originally in 2003. It is full of interesting electronic clicks and beats. Parades, their follow up album from 2007, I have always had trouble fully appreciating with it's ambitious arrangements. For new listeners I'd recommend the more fully rounded experimental pop they produced on Magic Chairs and Piramida.

~

1. Kings of Leon - Youth and Young Manhood

2. Bonnie Prince Billy - Master and Everyone

3. Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon

4. Mojo Presents - Return to the Dark Side of the Moon with Wish You Were Here Again

5. Efterklang - Parades

6. Efterklang - Tripper

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Log #6 - More Than One Way to Play a Guitar

Not a classic week this week, with only one album keeping it's spot this weekend; Efterklang's Piramida. The sumptuous Efterklang have just released a new album actually (Leaves) which has been described as some sort of interactive opera which they will be performing at the Barbican, London, early next year. I've heard a couple of tracks and am wondering, although it is admirable they continue to push the envelope, if they may have over stretched their ambitions this time. However in the meantime the effortlessly graceful Piramida continues to impress. If you like this one check out Magic Chairs next, their previous album which contains most of their best known tracks.

1. Efterklang - Piramida
2. Al Di Meola - Cielo e Terra
3. Tricky - Maxinquaye
4. Curtis Mayfield - Love's Sweet Sensation
5. Soft Machine - Third
6. Boards of Canada - Geogaddi

As a keen amateur guitarist I used to listen to alot of classical repertoire as a student - John Williams, Julian Bream, Segovia, Narcisco Yepes and John Mills. I was also keenly aware of the most revered electric guitarists out there - David Gilmour, Rory Gallagher, Neil Young, Andy Latimer, Richie Blackmore (who is reforming a version of Rainbow I hear), Eddie Van Halen, Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix of course, although I missed the point at first and snobbily frowned upon these electric maestros for not using their little finger of their left hands (right in Jimi's case) and barring the bass strings with their thumbs (a no-no for the classically trained). In a similar fashion I also dismissed any electronic music at the time for not using real instruments and therefore not requiring skill (my favourite band as a teenager was ELO as they played proper instruments like violins - and wasn't Jeff Lynne great at the last Glastonbury?).

I was completely unaware of whole areas of guitar playing in between these two extremes of classical and rock - acoustic, flamenco, blues and jazz for instance. I remember this began to change when a friend played me a record called Friday Night in San Francisco by three legendary acoustic guitarists I had never heard of - Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia basically jamming at breakneck speed in front of a live audience. Skillful and exciting that record paved the way towards my love now for the visionary acoustic players like Tommy Emmanuel and Will Ackerman. Having said that the featured record in this list, Al Di Meola's Cielo e Terra actually sounds a bit dated now and is very reminiscent of the 80s guitar fashions of synth-guitars and Ovation electro-acoustics. It is similar to Pat Metheny's revered Offramp album which I play a lot more. I always like the cover though, reproduced above, and there is at least one stand out track in the 9-minute Traces (Of a Tear).

On the other hand Tricky's hip hop masterpiece Maxinquaye still sounds fresh and current. It came out around the time of Portishead's stunning debut album Dummy. Maxinquaye is as good.

Curtis Mayfield's album may be a compilation. It's smooth and sensual as you'd expect with several well known tunes. Mayfield's latter years were unfortunately dogged by ill health after a serious injury resulting from an on stage accident where a lighting rig fell on him.

I used to have an old cassette of Soft Machine music. I don't know what the music was but it had a lovely organic groove with organ and drums - the lack of a guitarist was interesting. Their albums are called 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 etc. Most of their music is instrumental which is a good thing when drummer Robert Wyatt is your vocalist. This one, Third, has lots of jazz honks and squeaks and not much groove. The rest of the family call it "car-crash" music.

I have never heard anything like Boards of Canada. Their instrumental electronica music literally sounds out of tune, but is strangely entrancing. Completely original - it is a different kind of "car-crash" music and it's brilliant.

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Log #5 - The Handsome Family - Tales of Birds and Snow

An international flavour here with Americana pioneers The Handsome Family and Euro Symphonic Pop from German/Danish band, the classy Efterklang. The African continent is represented by Baka Beyond.

1. Efterklang - Piramida,

2. The Handsome Family - Through the Trees,

3. India Arie - Song Versation,

4. Baka Beyond - Ete,

5. DJ Vadim - USSR Repertoire,

6. Jill Scott - Who is Jill Scott?

A clean sweep this week, which is sort of surprising even to myself, as I was really enjoying the new Whitest Boy Alive entry and Kings of Convenience still (but sure they will make re-entries at some point). A change is sometimes enforced somewhat prematurely by other housemates with less staying power!

Efterklang are an amazing Danish band now making some of the greatest pop music out there today. Check out some of their videos on youtube. They started out a bit more indie and experimental and over the course of half a dozen albums (this one being their most recent) have matured into the consummate band - think Coldplay but with more originality and edge. Also great live, often with an orchestra. They've come a long way since I saw them in a room above a pub in Brighton.

The Handsome Family, and in particular this album, is where it all started for me, in Americana that is. I heard Weightless Again on a sampler album - "we stopped for coffee... in the Redwood Forest" and was hooked. Superb, albeit rather disturbing and bizarre, lyrics - short stories about birds, snow and death... 

The giant of Illinois

Died from a blister on his toe

After walking all day through the first winter snow

Throwing bits of stale bread

To the last speckled doves

He never even felt his shoe full of blood

Delirious with pain, his bedroom walls began to glow

And he felt himself soaring up through falling snow

And the sky was a woman's arms

Inspiring album artwork of nature and Through the Trees is this week's cover art, and my record of the week.

I don't know anything about India Arie except she has been championed by the late great Wayne Dyer. The songs are fairly middle of the road and quite souly and funky but er hem quite middly of the roadie. Neil Young famously said his Harvest album put him in the middle of the road and afterwards he headed straight for the ditch. 

Similarly Jill Scott is pretty new to me but this album sounds very current with laid back soul grooves reminiscent of some new chilled hip hop around at the moment (this CD has some of those annoying phantom tracks inserted at the end to thwart random plays, hence has to go in slot 6 of the magazine).

Talking of laid back you can't get more laid back than DJ Vadim - his average BPMs are so slow they barely register and make DJ Shadow seem like Metallica. I haven't really got into this album yet but his more song based Soundcatcher is brilliant.

Baka Beyond are a sort of Afro-Celt fusion band. Great live and sound how you'd expect with a bit of African music (specifically drums and guitars), and some Irish fiddly bits. Their best known album is probably The Meeting Pool but this is pretty similar, probably a bit more authentic to it's roots but less groundbreaking.

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