"To be loved like that makes all the difference. It does not lessen the terror of the fall, but it gives a new perspective on what that terror means. I had jumped off the edge, and then, at the very last moment, something reached out and caught me in midair. That something is what I define as love. It is the one thing that can stop a man from falling, the one thing powerful enough to negate the laws of gravity." Paul Auster (Moon Palace)

Friday, October 4, 2024

The Beatles - no reply, 1964

"John Lennon began writing "No Reply" in May 1964 while in Tahiti, where he was on holiday with his Beatles bandmate George Harrison and their respective partners, Cynthia Lennon and Pattie Boyd. Once back in London, Lennon finished writing the song with some assistance from Paul McCartney. On 3 June, after the Beatles had completed the recording for their album A Hard Day's Night, they taped a demo of the track at EMI Studios. In the description by author John Winn, the performance was lighthearted, with Lennon and McCartney joking as they sang. Ringo Starr had been hospitalised earlier that day and was therefore absent from the recording. Winn writes that the line-up on the demo was most likely Lennon on guitar, McCartney playing drums in place of Starr, and Harrison on bass."

Arcade Fire - no cars go, 2007

"No Cars Go" is a song by Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire. It is the fourth single released from the band's second full-length album, Neon Bible."

Bee Gees - reaching out, 1979

"the three idiosyncratic voices are still so bleached out and emaciated, and the whole sound so pasteurized by cellophane-wrap production effects that it's difficult to regard the album in terms outside of disco."

Saint Etienne - la la la cover, 1998

"The band Saint Etienne recorded another cover version, featured on the 1998 album A Song for Eurotrash with English lyrics that differ from the original"

The Style Council - the paris match, 1984

"Acting as a second part of a mini-suite beginning with the "Blue Café" instrumental, "Paris Match" continues the Bacharach/David, early-'60s-inspired mood. The melody is a delicious combination of pop and jazz, with a stately elegance that is unlike anything Paul Weller had ever written to date. A true torch ballad, the lyrics are a lonely, cinematic reflection of a lost lover in the wee hours of a London morning. The lead vocal is sung by Tracy Thorn, who delivers the emotion with a breathy grace."

Mazarin - another one goes by, 2005

"This reminds me of the rapper Common, who went by the name Common Sense on his first two albums but was sued by a ska band nobody had heard of by the same name. Hence, Common."

The Cranberries - away, 1994

"Dolores O'Riordan made it all happen with her voice, and that's not to discredit the rest of the band; but that voice is what made the Cranberries stand out amongst the rest."

Lee Scratch Perry - higher level, 2011

"At 75 years of age, Lee “Scratch” Perry should be declared a living cultural treasure and receive the protection and reverence usually reserved artists only after they are long dead. The only other musician of his age that comes close to matching Scratch’s output and longevity is Willie Nelson."

Beirut - the long island sound, 2006

"Yup, the 20-year-old is from New Mexico and currently lives in New York. Yeah, he's a kid. So, based on that information, just what should his band sound like? In recent interviews Condon's discussed his interest in French pop and chanson. While that sound's yet to work its way into Beirut, this new EP includes some important upgrades."

The Radio Dept - south side, 2006

"Drum Machine on Pet Grief. Been listening to this constantly the past few weeks. Does anyone know what drum machine they used on this record? Would also love to hear about other gear used on this record."

Thursday, October 3, 2024

The Beatles - do you want to know a secret, 1963

"The song was inspired by "I'm Wishing", a tune from Walt Disney's 1937 animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs which Lennon's mother, Julia, would sing to him as a child."

El Perro Del Mar - coming down the hill, 2006

“a song about coming home”

Del Amitri - heard through the wall, 1985

"the lyrics were "intelligent and witty, laced with sarcasm and venom," and the music contained "jaunty rhythms and quirky melodies."

El Perro Del Mar - here comes that feeling cover, 2006

"Here Comes That Feeling" is a song written by Dorsey Burnette and Joe Osborne and performed by Brenda Lee. The song reached No.5 in the UK and No.89 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1962. The also song reached No. 40 in Australia."

Etienne Daho - duel au soleil live, 2001

"Stage clothes are companions on the road and armour in which one slips into to become the Other. They are charged with all energies and emotions. Stage fright, the impatience to go on stage, the joys of sharing and the incomparable Great Love. The one we receive and the one we give".

AC Newman - beach bummer, 2014

"What's the song that plays when Wallis and Chantry are playing in the water. I know that the one that follows immediately is Beach Bummer. I looked through the song but I'm not sure if I missed it or something."

Alphaville - forever young, 1984

"Forever Young" is a song by German synth-pop band Alphaville from their 1984 debut studio album of the same name. The single was successful in Scandinavia and in the European German-speaking countries in the same year."

Wednesday, October 2, 2024

Everything But The Girl - caution to the wind, 2023

"a simple song about arrival and seizing the moment, so with the music we tried to capture the feeling of a perpetual point in time"

Pink Floyd - daybreak grantchester meadows, 1969

"Grantchester Meadows" was incorporated into Pink Floyd's The Man and the Journey concert suite as "Daybreak". It was performed live during the 1970 US tour, often opening the show. Live renditions of the song included Gilmour on a second acoustic guitar and providing vocals during the chorus, as well as Richard Wright playing two piano solos—one after the second verse's chorus and one during the coda (these solos were later played on the Farfisa organ)."

One Republic - all the right moves, 2009

"Lyrically, the exact meaning and point of "All the Right Moves" is somewhat obscure, but the audio textures formed by the words fit perfectly into the sound of the record. The overall feel is of an air of sadness in not quite being able to achieve one's goals and aspirations with another. Regardless of whether you experience a depth of meaning, you are likely to be singing along."

Beach Fossils - feel so high, 2023

"Love is learned. It’s harder to love than to hate, but people take the easy way out. So many people hate other people who aren’t like themselves, and it tears us apart as a society."

Monday, September 30, 2024

Neil Young - love and only love, 1990

"Sure in his most resonant songs Neil taps into the great musical vibrations of the universe that create the sound we love. Reflecting on the lyrics, he sings about classic psychological archetypes, a recurring musical motif. In Love and Only Love Neil teaches the lessons of two of our strongest emotions – Love and Hate. His description of their power and importance to our living a happy life is so elemental he has tapped into the root message of one of the greatest religious writings in history, the Bahgavad Gita."

The National - space invader, 2023

"The National’s “Space Invader” sees the indie rock champions dive into glimpses, snapshots and sounds of the past, exploring the “what if’s” that define love and loss."

Beirut - napoleon on the bellerophon, 2022

"Napoleon... returns to the Beirut that we know from previous releases in some sense - you get the strings and horns back a bit. This song, as well as the other is very minimal compared to the normal 10 instrument Beirut seen in his first two albums. The background on this song sounds very much like Scenic World. If you are a fan of Beirut pick it up, if not either get his first album or wait for an upcoming review!"

Saturday, September 28, 2024

Friday, September 27, 2024

The Reds Pinks And Purples - the world doesn't need another band, 2024

"Puede parecer que Glenn Donaldson edita discos The Reds, Pinks and Purples sin ton ni son y solo porque tiene un grupo de canciones que le sobran. Pero el de San Francisco sabe muy bien lo que se hace. Porque, a pesar de que lleva más de veinte discos y EPS editados desde 2019, cada uno tiene su coherencia y no son simples “Mr. Sobras”. La prueba la tenemos en su nuevo trabajo, donde aparece una faceta más sucia de lo habitual. Algo que ha conseguido reuniendo alguno de los singles que ha ido editando a lo largo de estos años, una nueva mezcla de un tema ya conocido, y varias canciones nuevas. Y, como no podría ser de otra manera, le funciona bastante bien."

Saint Etienne - swim swan swim, 1998

"We used to be called ironic all the time. We didn’t like things that suggested we were using reference points because we thought they were funny, rather than because we liked them. I remember in that interview he refused to believe we liked Dazzle Ships by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, which these days is accepted as a great record. That album was a huge influence on us – a massive pop group putting together two or three recognisable pop songs and loads of found sounds."

Barclay James Harvest - harbour, 1978

"Harbour" is a tuneful close harmony piece and "In Search For England" sounds like classical Genesis."

Ozark Henry - this one's for you, 2010

"Ozark Henry is one of many alter egos of Belgian artist/producer/composer/pioneer in immersive sound Piet Goddaer. Over the years Ozark Henry has produced music ranging from pop, to avant-garde electronica, to a symphonic album with the National Orchestra of Belgium. Considered one of the most influential “voices” in immersive sound, Henry’s universe is defined by a blending of craft with experiment, audio with visual and heritage with technology. His ground-breaking work in 3D immersive sound has been featured in TEDx and Google NY talks. Ozark Henry is a united Nations Goodwill ambassador against human trafficking for the United Nations Office On Drugs And Crime."

Damien Jurado - and loraine, 2016

"a story of finding some sort of inner peace"

Hibou - glow, 2015

"His name is Peter Michel, he is only 20 years old.. yet he makes some of the finest dreamy pop sounds I've heard lately. Known as Hibou, he talks about craft spells, yummy cheesecakes and his forthcoming debut album."

Thursday, September 26, 2024

Club 8 - left behind, 2024

"They must be among the most prolific acts out there and this after decades in the industry so it seems like Club 8 collective fire (Karolina Komstedt and Johan Angergård) shows no sign of abating. ‘Left Behind’ is fulsome of arrangement, heavy percussion/light harmonies and all scuttling along at the speed of knots. Yep, we’re afforded an aural view to lift us free from daily blandom and into a world where the sweet smelling sound of dreampop comes in bountiful supplies."

The Cure - closedown, 1989

"The album's third track, "Closedown", contains layers of keyboard texture complemented with a slow, gloomy guitar line. The track was written by Smith as a means to list his physical and artistic shortcomings."

Laurent Voulzy - dans le vent qui va, 2009

"It has its roots firmly in the Sixties, with “Mary Quant” coming across as a Beatles/Hollies hybrid, just brought somewhat up to date. Laurent has a pleasant voice and the album is middle of the road singer songwriter with some rock and pop elements, along with those Sixties influences, and even some ELO-style orchestration. This may not be an absolutely essential album to my ears, but at the same time it is also something I enjoyed listening to, and sometimes that is all we want from our music. It doesn’t rely on my concentrating or thinking hard about what is going on, but instead just flows over the listener in a relaxed and pleasant manner."

The Style Council - with everything to lose, 1985

"I had a total belief in the Style Council. I was obsessed in the early years. I lived and breathed it all. I meant every word, and felt every action. Our Favourite Shop was its culmination."

Monaco - marine, 2000

"When New Order went on hiatus after 1993's Republic, bassist Peter Hook took the group's sound and spirit with him. After his previous side project Revenge was shredded by critics and snubbed by record buyers, Hook returned to the New Order formula - one he helped shape - when he collaborated with David Potts (guitar, vocals) as Monaco in 1996."

Azure Ray - for the sake of the song, 2002

"Azure Ray is extremely pretty, soft, easy-on-the-tympanum pop music built around acoustic guitar strumming. If you were silly enough to try to delineate an 'indie music aesthetic,' this would fall many city blocks outside of it. No fuzz, no feedback, no indigestible chords, and all with polished production and solid arrangements."

Monaco - what do you want from me, 1997

"Sounding like New Order with smiling faces, this first offering from Peter Hook and guitarist David Potts' partnership is a bright pop affair with those unmistakable Hook bass lines."

Wednesday, September 25, 2024

The Beatles - and your bird can sing, 1966

"Aside from dismissing it as a substandard work, John Lennon never discussed "And Your Bird Can Sing". His first wife Cynthia recalled that the song was inspired by her presenting Lennon with a clockwork bird inside a gilded cage, wrapped in gift paper, apart from the wind-up mechanism. She wound up the bird as she handed the present to Lennon so that it sang, leaving him with "an expression of sheer disbelief on his face" as he removed the wrapping paper."

Sintra, agora mesmo, 25 de Setembro de 2024

The Polyphonic Spree - galloping seas, 2023

“We’re all galloping through rough waters. I tried to describe the process as well as I could and encourage people to keep their heads above the storm and the waves. Ride it out. It’s going to be okay. It starts off very calm and introspective, and you can envision where it’s going.”

Blur - the ballad, 2023

"The album's songs were written by frontman Damon Albarn in 2022 while on tour with Gorillaz, and composed by Albarn and the rest of the band. It was produced by James Ford at Studio 13 in London and Devon. It is Blur's first album since The Magic Whip (2015), and their shortest album, with a runtime under 40 minutes."

Architecture In Helsinki - scissor paper rock, 2003

"Can an Australian band that calls itself «Architecture In Helsinki» be any good? It probably can, but it better be real good, then, since it takes an awful lot of goodness to redeem the original sin of calling oneself «Architecture In Helsinki» when not only do you not live in Helsinki, but you live so far away from Helsinki, you might as well call yourself «Architecture In Eldorado» and get away with it on a much firmer basis. In other words, these guys are so ferociously «indie-indie» even before you hear them play a single note, they have to work double hard to earn our pardon, and triple hard to earn our admiration."

Saint Etienne - like a motorway, 1994

"Pete wrote this short-story lyric while we were on a writing trip (drinking holiday) in the Forest Of Dean. Kids in the local pub always put Exterminate by Snap on the jukebox when we were there, which subtly influenced our writing on this. It was once described as sounding like “a row of fridges”."

Barclay James Harvest - nova lepidoptera, 1978

"The morse code at the beginning of the song spells out "U.F.O.", and the lyrics are made up from cut-up titles and phrases from John's collection of science-fiction novels."

The Radio Dept - let me have this, 2005

“It’s extremely important to us to do what we think is right, what we think is fun, what we think is worthwhile,” the unexpectedly affable and very agreeable Duncanson explains"

Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Neil Young - what happened yesterday, 1995

"I really like how between the distortion and rock moments, there is time to do some slow, calm pieces. There’s two and they re-use musical motifs from the album, but in a minimalistic approach: it’s only an organ and Neil Young‘s brittle voice, doing a little segue (‘What happened yesterday’) and a epilogue (‘Fallen angel’). Anger and frustration paired with reflectiveness and acceptance. It’s a couple of beautiful moments in an already stunning album. If you like how this sounds, I really gotta recommend you check Neil Young‘s unplugged: he deconstructs ‘Like a hurricane’ into a haunting piece (again, only organ and voice)."

The Style Council - why i went missing, 1988

"I put a lot of time into it, and there was a better vibe when we recorded it than The Cost of Loving, which was a real rough time for us. It wasn't particularly inspiring and I felt we'd got back on track. I thought, lyrically, the songs were really good. Again, some of the performances were lacking."

Saint Etienne - marcie dreams of deptford, 2008

"At their 2003 Xmas show (which I was lucky enough to attend) they gave out a CD with a track called 'Marcie Dreams of Deptford'."

Blonde Redhead - twenty-three, 2007

"The 23rd hexagram of the I Ching is commonly known as "Splitting Apart", the point in a cycle where upheaval and disintegration enters in. The number 23, heralded by many an occultist and rag-tag philosopher is often considered a magical number associated with change, the point in a series where new energy comes in to transform the pre-existing condition and change the trajectory. A pop example of these esoteric notions, sadly, may be beloved New York indie rockers Blonde Redhead's seventh full-length, 23."

Asobi Seksu - coming up, 2011

"for a band labelled “shoegaze”, has all the uplift of a balloon taking flight, ditching My Bloody Valentine wah-wah ballast as it goes"

Nation Of Language - stumbling still, 2023

"themes of hopeless devotion, infatuation and overwhelming obsession, presented as the ideal soundtrack for long walks through city streets"

Monday, September 23, 2024

Bee Gees - irresistible force, 1997

"It was written in 1995, and was recorded in 1996 as a demo and then this song was recorded with "Miracles Happen." This track was one of the highlights in that album with its guitar and synth rock sound."

Destroyer - song for america, 2011

"It was within the album’s title track — and first single — that Bejar identifies that maybe this shift in approach would bring him the attention in the U.S that he believed he deserved. As the song enters its coda he muses to himself “I wrote a song for America….who knew?”. Due to his habit of self-referencing, this line would return towards the end of the album in a song simply called Song for America."

Bob Dylan - if not for you, 1971

"If Not for You" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan from his October 1970 album New Morning. It was issued as the A-side of a single in Europe in early 1971."

Sintra, Praia Pequena, 23 de Setembro de 2024 de manhã

Franz Ferdinand - walk away, 2005

"Walk Away" is a song by Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand and is featured on their second album, You Could Have It So Much Better. It was released 5 December 2005 as the second single from that album in the United Kingdom, entering the UK Singles Chart at number 13 a week later."

Thursday, September 5, 2024

Paul McCartney - silly love songs, 1976

"The song, which features disco overtones, was seen as being written in response to music critics (as well as John Lennon) accusing McCartney of predominantly writing "silly love songs" and "sentimental slush"; however, McCartney has since clarified that the song was actually directed to John Lennon who accused him of writing such songs."

The Mamas And The Papas - midnight voyage, 1968

"The song Midnight Voyage which closes the album has the distinction of being one of a very few Mamas and Papas tracks to be released with false starts and studio chatter, giving the listener a brief snippet of how a song comes together."

The Radio Dept - pet grief, 2006

"Fill up it does, with the heavy, industrial, almost tribal-like percussion that gives way to title track “Pet Grief.” The synthesizer carries the instrumental, while beautiful piano and acoustic guitar enter to round out the sound. The dreamy, listless, accented vocals are trademark Radio Dept., as Johan Duncanson lets you in on his inner monologue, his urge to be there for his friend who’s just been dumped clashing with his unspoken love for them. He holds back, “I’ll shut my mouth for you,” but he knows how feckless he comes across, “what can I say, what can I do for me to analyze you?” It’s a situation that has no optimal outcome (“It is a double bind, I can’t win this one“), but he chooses the passive option here to keep from pushing them away."

Such a great song!

Bee Gees - alone, 1997

"That was one of the first ones we wrote for the album. I really remember having a good time writing it. We were sort of set up in the studio here with the three of us just together and I got some bagpipe sounds. We were just screwing around. And BG programmed this groove on the computer. We thought it was cool. We don't actually go in and plan to write a ballad or an R&B song. We just say, 'Let's go that route.' And we'll follow it. And 'Alone' came out of that. I love the line 'I'm on a wheel of fortune with a twist of fate.' Because of the harmony and that chorus, it was like a bit of '50s as well. And I like the idea of being that sort of Beatlesque type of song. I wanted that rambling. That sort of Byrds type, the 12-string thing going, but we just did it with the bagpipes instead and made it all connect. It was a very exciting demo. We weren't too sure about the bagpipes, but Robin actually persisted. He said, 'They're great; you gotta keep the bagpipes.'"

Pet Shop Boys - here new extended mix, 2003

"Their immaculate synthpop packages emotion in cosmopolitanism, characterising love and loss via Italian subcultures, the Bolshevik uprising and David Lodge novels."

Wednesday, September 4, 2024

The Go-Betweens - finding you, 2005

“I really like the powerful build-up, it hits the line about lightning and then it’s like a crescendo. It’s written by Grant and he wrote it probably two years or something before he died, and I think it’s one of the best five to 10 songs he ever did. Magnificent song.“

Saint Etienne - who do you think you are cover, 1993

"Stewart Mason from AllMusic felt that "Who Do You Think You Are" is "one of St. Etienne's most groove-oriented tunes." Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "English modern-pop act delves into Bo Donaldson & the Heywoods' pop evergreen with fanciful, disco-minded results. Singer Debsey offers a soft, sugar-coated vocal with a pleasant, cushiony house groove resting beneath."

Camel - fritha, 1975

“Sanctuary” (1:05) and “Fritha” (1:19) are songs that I consider as bridges that connect to title track “The Snow Goose” (3:12) which contains guitar solo augmented with long sustain organ in the vein of Jan Akermann of Focus."

Tuesday, September 3, 2024

Neil Young - southern pacific, 1981

"Southern Pacific" launches an album side largely devoted to lyrics about transportation. "Southern Pacific" finds Young imagining life as a train conductor nearing retirement. In the 1980s, Young enjoyed sharing a model trainset with his son, and would later acquire a share in Lionel, and help invent a remote control model train operating system. "Southern Pacific" would feature prominently in Young's country setlists in 1984 and 1985 during his tour with the International Harvesters, and again during Young's 1999 solo acoustic tour."

Marillion - incubus, 1984

"1 Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? 5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."

Death Cab For Cutie - brothers on a hotel bed, 2005

"December is the last month of the year and often the coldest. While it’s usually celebrated with the greatest of holidays, the rest of the lyrics, “cause I’m not who I used to be,” lets on that this might not be the carol you’re looking for."

Bee Gees - lonely days, 1970

"Lonely Days" is a ballad written and performed by the Bee Gees. It appeared on their album 2 Years On, and was released as a single, becoming their first Top Five hit in the US, peaking at number three in the Billboard Hot 100 and reaching number one in the Cashbox and Record World charts. Barry Gibb later re-recorded the song with country quartet Little Big Town for his 2021 album Greenfields."

The Style Council - my ever changing moods, 1984

"In a 2020 article for the Los Angeles Review of Books, Thomas McLean called "My Ever Changing Moods" "one of Weller’s best compositions," identifying the song's debt to the Classics IV's "Stormy" (1968) and its influence on Santana's "The Game of Love". Calling attention to the song's mix of personal and political, McLean reads the song lyric "the hush before the silence, the winds after the blast" as "a potent reference to nuclear fears in the Thatcher/Reagan era" and praises the line "Evil turns to statues," declaring it "as brisk a summing up of commemorative history as I know, and one that takes on new significance in 2020."

The New Pornographers - my rights versus yours, 2007

"The theme of conflict is present before you even slit the plastic and play the disc, no more so assertively than with “My Rights Versus Yours,” a strange, poetic reflection on relationships masked by the blunt zero-sum title. It’s a chill, autumnal song. The imagery of warring factions is reinforced by the final lines of the first refrain; “You left your sorrow dangling / It hangs in the air like a school cheer,” conveying a sense of a football skirmish watched against the backdrop of an icy blue sky of a fall afternoon."

Per Sahlström - miles away, 2009

"alternative indie pop sweden swedish pop songwriter Sweden"

Bee Gees - intro you should be dancing alone live, 1976

"A lot of disco was just funk repurposed for the dance floor."

Monday, September 2, 2024

Neil Young - i'm the ocean live, 1995

"I’m the Ocean has been one of my favorite NY songs since I first heard it. Incredible lyrics and I love how the chord progression just has this constant ascending feeling (not sure if that makes sense) like it’s always building to something and then it just keeps delivering. I never get tired of it!"

Beirut - le phare du cap bon, 2022

"The intro reminded me of a 90's pop song"

Echo And The Bunnymen - buried alive, 2001

"Wall of Sound gave a positive review, stating "Flowers features the familiar psychedelic-tinged pop songwriting, chiming guitars, and unmistakable voice that have always been the group's trademark, but 20 years down the road, experience, nostalgia, and longing have tempered the band's sound."

Bee Gees - fallen angel, 1993

“Our heroes were The Beatles. Everything they did was different. We took a page from that book going back to our first album. And we wanted variety on this album. We didn’t want to do one kind of music.”

Belle And Sebastian - late developers, 2023

"‘Late Developers’ should be applauded on its own merits, the work of a group whose continued evolution is tied to an astute awareness of where their talents lie. ‘Late Developers’ is a fine piece of pop whimsy, delivered with self-deprecating panache."

Sunday, September 1, 2024

Paul McCartney - all my loving live, 1993

"All My Loving" was playing on the sound system at Roosevelt Hospital emergency room when Lennon was pronounced dead after being shot on December 8, 1980."

New Order - avalanche, 1993

"Avalanche has the most atmosphere, the most beautiful melodies and orchestration, and the most heart of any track on the album. It feels like they all put their differences aside one last time to channel the sublime; drawing as they collectively did some of their finest instrumental performances on Republic: the lovely interplay between bass and acoustic guitars, the washes of synth, strings and reverbed piano, the deep tones and echoes, the simple but metronomic drum loop, and of course Gillian’s voice – as if it were itself a backing violin. Avalanche has a real melancholy cinematic quality to it, and that final held note is like the dimming light at dusk – always my favourite time of day."

Strand Of Oaks - dream brother, 2018

"While Tim’s personal life had begun to heal in some ways, he had also experienced one of the most traumatic events of his life. Over lunch at a Cheesecake Factory in a mall made to look like ancient Rome, Tim talked about his younger brother being unconscious in the hospital for two weeks after his heart suddenly stopped, due to a rare condition. Tim had flown back to Goshen and didn’t leave the hospital for a week. He didn’t sleep for five days, either, and eventually he was forced to leave and return home to Pennsylvania. The gravity of nearly losing his brother is one more factor that’s led to Tim dismissing his tendency for “fetishizing sadness” on his records up to, and including, HEAL. It also resulted in a track called “Dream Brother,” a trippy but melancholic song that captured the surreal place Tim went to during his brother’s brush with death."

Etienne Daho - late night, 1986

"Let’s just get something straight here: Étienne Daho is very cool. He’s cooler than the coolest popstar you have at the top scale of cool. Better still, his voice is so good it makes every song it graces sound like the coolest song you’ve ever heard. All those styles from synthpop to surf rock, Étienne can do it all."

The Radio Dept - the worst taste in music, 2006

"This is a really lovely song. I've been looking for their album for awhile now but it isn't available in most stores."

Saturday, August 31, 2024

The Doors - light my fire, 1967

"Light My Fire" originated in early 1966 as a composition by Robby Krieger, who said that he was inspired by the melody of "Hey Joe" and the lyrics of the Rolling Stones' "Play with Fire". On taking his initial composition to the band, John Densmore suggested that it should have more of a Latin rhythm, Jim Morrison wrote the second verse and part of the chorus ("Try to set the night on fire"), while Ray Manzarek added the Bach-influenced introductory organ motif; Densmore also suggested that it should open with a single snare drum hit."

Saint Etienne - sylvie, 1998

"Larry Flick from Billboard noted that the song "contrasts vibrant music with heartbreaking lyrics". Dino Scatena from The Daily Telegraph declared it a "pop gem", describing it as "melancholic" and "simply euphoric".

The Go-Betweens - boundary rider, 2005

"I think quite simply Boundary Rider is one of the most underrated Australian songs I’ve ever heard. It’s a brilliant song which seems to get better the more you hear it. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: no Australian band like The Go-Betweens encapsulates more instinctively the quintessential Australia ‘sound’. They have the essence of Australia coursing through their music and Boundary Rider is at the top of the musical pecking order in demonstrating this."

Per Sahlström - no substitute, 2009

 

"Per Sahlström is a swedish songwriter and producer. The music is mostly acoustic but sometimes involves electronic sounds. Quite often it's catchy yet melancho"

Enya - caribbean blue, 1991

"Caribbean Blue" is a song by Irish musician Enya, included as the second track on her third studio album, Shepherd Moons (1991). It follows a waltz time signature, and mentions the Anemoi (Ancient Greek wind gods): Boreas, Afer Ventus (Africus), Eurus, and Zephyrus. The song was released as the lead single from the album on 7 October 1991 by WEA."

Pat Metheny - here to stay, 1995

"The world (and especially the prog community) needs to hear the astounding skills, diversity, of the music that Pat & his collaborators have blessed us with over his 45-year career. From early bands with Gary Burton, Jaco Pastorius, Joni Mitchell, and Jaco Pastorius, to collaborations with the likes of Nana Vasconcelos, Ornette Coleman, Charlie Haden, Cuong Vu, John Scofield, Jim Hall, Billy Higgins, Roy Haynes, Christian McBride, Brad Mehldau, Ralph Towner, Dave Brubeck, B.B. King, Steve Swallow, Dave Holland, Eberhard Weber, Jack DeJohnnette, Michael Brecker, Tony Williams, Herbie Hancock, Stanley Clarke, Chick Corea, and of course, Steve Reich, to multiple solo projects and several "Group" lineups with the likes of Danny Gottleib and Mark Egan, Steve Rodby, Paul Wertico, and Pedro Aznar, and Mark Ledford, Paul Blemires, Don Alias, Glen Velez, Dave Samuels, and Mino Cinèlu, and, after Paul Wertico retired, Antonio Sanchez, as well as life-long friend and collaborator, the late, great Lyle Mays."

Bee Gees - spicks and specks, 1966

"Their 1966 single ‘Spicks and Specks’ reached number 1 and was named Go-Set’s single of the year just as the band left to seek its fortune in London. Their debut English single, ‘New York Mining Disaster 1941’, was the first of many international hits. In 1977 their soundtrack album for Saturday Night Fever would become the largest-selling movie soundtrack in history (although it was unaccountably overlooked for Oscar nomination); at one point, Barry Gibb could count five of his songs in the US Top 10 at once."

The Radio Dept - i don't like it like this, 2005

"The trilogy of Radio Dept's first few albums have no skips, no songs worth forgetting and consistently surprising turns that I can't get enough of. In my eyes, Lesser Matters, is their main masterpiece, their heart and soul at its most ethereal, detailed, interior and intimate. It feels like a concept album of a love that Johan can't forget, from eight years ago..., 2003-8, ie 1995."