My friend Joe Apple sent me a Facebook message asking if I would review an album he recommended. I am all up for that. Joe has good taste in music and the record he recommend was one I had not heard of: Hot Dreams by Timber Timbre.
Timber Timbre is a Canadian indie-folk act led by singer/songwriter Taylor Kirk. It's very atmospheric, very elaborate sounding. The record starts off vocally sounding almost like an old Rick Nelson record, but about halfway through the album owner "Beat The Drum Slowly," the reference becomes Richard Hawley, a fine English singer/songwriter who spent some time in Pulp. Hawley is a guy I once said was music to drink Scotch to. This record is very much in that spirit. It reminds me of a less sinister Nick Cave record.
I like the line that opens the title cut "I want to dance, I want to dance, I want to dance with a black woman." Lyrics like that grab the attention. Lyrically it's an interesting record. "Curtains!?" is a great cut; opens with a heavy beat and keyboard with sharp electric chords on the guitar, a quiet break in the middle before ending loudly. "Bring Me Simple Men" reminds me of Urge Overkill covering "Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon." The music feels like it could be a soundtrack to a spaghetti western or a Tarantino movie. "Resurrection Drive Part II" is another such cut, but in this one I can see sinister looking hippie-chicks dancing behind a thumping beat and weird violins scraping. Maybe I am just weird.
What I like about it is the mood it creates. It is an incredibly interesting record. And that's good praise. So many records are dull; this one holds the attention. When one song ends here I am eager to hear what is coming next. Thanks, Joe, for the recommendation!
Aimee Mann has long been a favorite songwriter of mine. After Til Tuesday, who were a fine 80s band in their own right, she made two outstanding power-pop solo records: Whatever and I'm With Stupid. If you watched Melrose Place (I didn't) you probably heard "That's Just What You Are" off the latter record. She also got a lot of exposure doing songs for P.T. Anderson's Magnolia, a movie that was written with Aimee Mann in mind, and which featured all the characters in the movie singing "Wise Up." The rest of her solo output has been good but not great. Her 2012 record Charmer is probably the best of the post-Magnolia output.
Now she has teemed up with Ted Leo to form The Both. Ted Leo is considered an indie alternative (whatever that means) artist but labels aside he's a singer/songwriter. I never really got into him that much, but after hearing this record, I should give him another shot. The Both is a great collection of power pop gems. Mann is on bass and Leo on guitar and they take turns on the lead vocals. Both sound great, but it's even better when they harmonize. At first glance it seems to be a trifle, just a one-off side project of two established artists having fun, but the songs are so well written and so well played it isn't fair to dismiss it as such. My two favorite are "Milwaukee" and "Pay For It," both of which bounce along merrily with great melodies, clever lyrics and super production. What I like best is that Mann has never had a guitar player working with her as intense as Ted Leo. His playing makes the songs roar to life. They are playing the 930 Club on Friday night and I am hoping to go.
My most favorite band on the planet not named Rush is also Canadian: The Tragically Hip. I have written about them extensively before (here and here and here) so my admiration is well known. Their singer is the amazing Gord Downie. He has mellowed out a bit as he has gotten older, but he is still one of the most mesmerizing performers I have ever seen. He seems to go into a trance when singing. Hip shows are always an amazing experience.
He has just released a collaboration with fellow Canadians The Sadies called Gord Downie, The Sadies And The Conquering Sun. The Sadies are another band I never quite got into; they were always a bit more eclectic than I had patience for. I was honestly surprised when I heard about this record. Downie has done a few solo records himself, all of them interesting but all of them again eclectic and therefore not as interesting to me as Hip records. The fact that he was making a record with another band was a bit disconcerting. What about the Hip? Why does Gord feel like he needs to work with another band? Are they breaking up! GACK!!
Hopefully a break-up isn't imminent. For the time being, to get a Gord fix, this will have to do. The best track is the kick-off track "Crater." Noisy and gritty guitars drive the tune. "Los Angeles Times" is a nice mid-tempo number with a good Clarence White-esque guitar solo at the end. Ltrically it's typical Gord Downie; sort of weird, sort of obtuse, sort of rambling but clever in every way. If this was a Hip record it would be a good Hip record, but not as good as the classics. Perhaps Gord just wanted a break from his band; collaborating with old friends and seeing what happens. I hope he doesn't forget where home is.
Here's the FANTASTIC video for the FANTASTIC "Milwaukee" by The Both:
And not quite fantastic but still extremely cool, here's "Crater" by Gord Downie and The Sadies.
Music is not only a source of enjoyment for your humble writer nor a source of inspiration but also a source of admiration. I do not categorize it as something as trite as "selling out." Whatever that means. Not many artists get the chance to sell out. Most stay under the radar and eventually fall away. Artists who stick with it, who keep doing their thing no matter that it does not seem to be reaching any kind of critical mass. Or that they barely keep hanging on. I admire that tenaciousness. Artists like Bill Mallonee and Grant-Lee Phillips and Mark Kozelek and Aimee Mann. I respect these artists because they know who they are and they make music reflective of that.
Matthew Good is another such artist. Maybe the prime example of them. He is from Canada. He used to front a band called The Matthew Good Band. After a few excellent records he dropped the Band from the act name and just went with his name. That is fine, his presence has been the driving force. His popularity in his native Canada has always far eclipsed that in the United States. He has won Junos, he has had videos on MuchMusic. That was where I first discovered him in the late 90s. "Hello Timebob" and "Giant" and "Strange Days" from his brilliant Beautiful Midnight were on regular rotation and were my first real exposure to him. He does not play the states too terribly often. My old roommate and I trekked to Pittsburg to see the MGB play one time. The other time I saw him was solo and caustic at Iota in Arlington, VA.
His latest album is called Arrows of Desires and it is classic sounding Matthew Good. Great guitar lines and sing along choruses. A lot of attitude and a lot of anger. It is a very anachronistic record, much like the muscle car that graces the album cover. The vibe is still 90s alternative. For someone who grew up on that you get no complaint from me.
In his lyrics, in his interviews, in his writings, there is a lot of energy and a lot of anger. Anger at how the world works. Anger at the successful who have their success on the backs of others. Anger at the politicians who are ruining his country, who are ruining the world. Anger for the kids who can't go to school without fear of being shot down. Anger at how life has treated his characters, whether they are auto-biographical or not. You might not agree with everything he says, you might not agree with anything he says, but you have to as a fellow human being appreciate the passion behind it.
He has always come across as a curmudgeon, as someone you might NOT want to have a beer with because you might just want him to shut up. I am not clever enough to analyze the lyrics. I think when anybody does that, no matter how clever they think they are, it is impossible not to project their own issues, problems, worries into them. After nearly 20 years Matthew Good is still doing his thing his way. He had a taste of success but it never happened. But he has been able to carve out a great little career of great songs put onto great records. Arrows of Desire deserved a space on my top 10. It is as good as anything he has ever done. And that says quite a bit if you know the rest of his discography.
Here's "Guns of Carolina." Give it a listen. You might be surprised.
When I was in college I was a power pop-aholic. Anything with jangly guitars and great harmonies and hooky melodies and I was all over it. When I graduated and found a job and started earning, for me at the time, real money, I discovered the Not Lame catalog. This was a mail-order outfit that specialized in power pop. I loved going through the catalog and reading reviews that went like this: "If you like x then you are SURE to like y!" This was a paper catalog and while the internet was starting to get steam, there were not any samples to listen to online, so it was a token of faith. So CDs from bands like The Tories and The Mockers and Stonecake and This Perfect Day and Blue Van Gogh and The Mockingbirds all showed up. Rarely was I disappointed.
One of the bands I loved dearly was Canada's Odds. They stood out because they wrote catchy songs and had a unique vocal sound but they were also extremely clever in their lyrics writing. Their best record, in your chronicler's humble opinion, was 1994's Good Weird Feeling. Great tracks like "Heaven's Radio," "Truth Untold," "The Last Drink" and "Anybody Else With Me" (really there are no bad tracks on this record) make it stand up even when it's...gulp...20 years old.
In the late 90s the band went their separate ways. In the mid 2000s they reformed under the name The New Odds...some legal issues got the name held up. That record was....OK. Just yesterday I downloaded their new EP, The Most Beautiful Place On Earth, recording under the Odds name. Gone is Steve Drake (replaced by a fellow who's name I already forget...wait lemme look it up...Murray Atkinson) but Craig Northey and Doug Elliott and Pat Steward remain. The new EP is....OK. The songs aren't as memorable, though the first cut "Anything You Want" has that classic Odds sound. I can't really describe it, but like any good band, Odds have a deliberate feel, a vibe to their music. It helps that Craig Northey's voice has a distinctive nasal quality. The voice is part of what makes it OK. Maybe it's the production or maybe it's the obvious, but Craig sounds old, weary. The voice doesn't soar like it used to. Perhaps I am being mean. I am going to stop. If you like good power pop then you should download this...it's only $5. If you are an Odds fan then you most definitely get this it will make you happy.
I couldn't find any links to stuff off the new EP, so here's "Heaven's Radio" from 1994. The quality is poor but the song is still super awesome.
Listening to a record...and by record I mean a real live vinyl LP...is the best way to really appreciate the music. Especially through headphones. I've been sounding like a broken records on this topic lately...did I really just say that...whatever. My favorite way to unwind after a day has been to lay out on the couch with the headphones on listening to music. It gives me a chance to not just decompress but to really hear the music. Listening at work or even on the computer while doing other stuff it is just background noise. The car is a good place but there are distractions...like not crashing. But laying in the dark with just the music is a great way to experience all the nuances of an album.
Take the latest record from my number-2-most-favorite-band-of-all-time The Tragically Hip. It came out in 2012 yet did not make my top 10 of the year. I never really gave it a close listen, so it never really formed in my mind. I found it to be a disappointment. This has been a trend with The Hip whose last few records have taken time to grow on me. Last year I did a primer (click here and here) on them and the last few records all seemed kind dull to start before springing to life. That happened when I was writing the primer and took the time to really listen close.
The latest record is called Now For Plan A. Last week I ordered the vinyl from MapleMusic in Canada even though I have had it digitally since it was released. I figured they are one of my favorite bands and I should just in principle have whatever media the record came out on (I have all the previous CDs already).
I have listened to it closely about 3 times now and I can say I have better appreciation for it. The Hip are definitely a band that are aging. I don't mean that in a bad way. Here's a better description: they are maturing. It's easily their most mellow record. There are no fist pumping anthems, though "The Modern Spirit" tries, but there is lots of finely crafted music here. The sense is that the band is slowing down some, interested less in simple rocking and more in experimenting and crafting the music. No chugging chords but more complicated guitar interplay.
Lyrically it is vintage Hip in that it's strange and appears kind of fake-deep but is really more clever. Gord Downie is one of the more enigmatic lyricists out there. Scanning the lyric sheet for a sample I can't find one that really speaks to me. There's no "Nautical Disaster" or "Bobcaygeon" here. The usually references to Canada about. They are without a doubt a Canadian band.
On the whole it is a good album. Not my favorite Hip album, probably in the bottom third, but something has to be down there, right? I am glad they aren't just making the same records over and over again. The record has a vibe and a personality of it's own. More relaxed, more restrained. The Hip are at the point in their career where it is perfectly fine for them to do that. Choice cuts include the title song, "At Transformation," "About This Map" and "Goodnight Attawapiskat."
Here's the video for "The Lookahead." It has Sarah Harmer helping on vocals and features the band's sense of humor. Or should I say "humour?"
One of my favorite Canadian bands is The Tea Party. They bear no resemblance to the political movement. They're a proggy, classic rock-sounding trio. Imagine Jim Morrison fronting Led Zeppelin and you have a starting point. Anyway, they have been dormant for a bunch of years but they just released a live record and accompanying Blu Ray. I just downloaded the former and will get the latter. It's very cool to see them back at it and I hope they go on a full-fledged reunion tour.
Here's one of my favorite tunes of theirs: "The Bazaar" off of their best record: The Edges Of Twilight.
Rockin, eh?
The one time I was aware they were playing DC was at the old 930 Club (that long ago!) and I wasn't able to go because they were opening for Dogstar and the show was sold out. What a crock! Screw you, Neo!
Another funny story: I was sitting in the backseat of a car driving back from a King's X show at Jaxx in Springfield with my buddies Clay and Doug and I started making up a song, to the tune of another TP song called "Correspondences," about a demon fighting Doug. I don't remember the specificities but there was a line about the cold hands of death around Doug's throat. And something about spitting in Satan's face. What can I say, I had a few to drink.
Anyway, check out The (REAL) Tea Party. They are actually a REALLY cool band.
Timber Timbre is a Canadian indie-folk act led by singer/songwriter Taylor Kirk. It's very atmospheric, very elaborate sounding. The record starts off vocally sounding almost like an old Rick Nelson record, but about halfway through the album owner "Beat The Drum Slowly," the reference becomes Richard Hawley, a fine English singer/songwriter who spent some time in Pulp. Hawley is a guy I once said was music to drink Scotch to. This record is very much in that spirit. It reminds me of a less sinister Nick Cave record.
