speed of dark

One of the best things about having a music blog is that people will send you free music, CDs, band swag, all kinds of neat stuff. I always welcome the opportunity to listen to something new, so I love it when I find these types of goodies in my inbox.

Today I received an email from Ryan Carroll, the lead singer of the band Saturna. Saturna hails from Portland, Oregon and claims bands such as The Jesus and Mary Chain, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Sonic Youth, and Slowdive, among others, as influences. I had the opportunity to check out their All Night EP, released in July 2006.

The song Blanket of Stars immediately reminded me of Catherine Wheel, a (now defunct) band I absolutely adore, with a similar driving, fuzzy guitar sound. The echo-y sounds on Chasing the Unpredictable sounded awesome in my headphones, and the lyric-free dreamyness of Springboard was excellent. After listening to all of the five songs on the EP, I'm hungry for more.

Saturna currently have a show coming up on December 22 at the Kenton Club, if you're lucky enough to live in Portland, OR. Hopefully soon they'll play in Los Angeles and I can go to a show. Check out their official website, their very own blog, and of course, their myspace page. Their All Night EP is available at iTunes and at Amazon.

from All Night EP:
saturna: blanket of stars
saturna: chasing the unpredictable
saturna: springboard

Wow, November is almost over! Here we are, smack dab in the middle of the fattening holiday season. The cold weather is more likely to make you curl up with a book and a mug of hot chocolate than get out and get some exercise.

We need inspiration! Here are a few tunes from my personal exercise CD--fast ones that make you want to pump those legs and get your blood going.

I'm also including one of my favorite video clips. You may have gathered that I am a cat person. Cats are lazy animals. They eat, sleep 18 hours a day, claw your furniture, and shed hair on your black clothes. What I like about this pretty little white cat is that she doesn't know why she's supposed to get on the treadmill, she doesn't understand that it keeps moving, but she keeps on trying anyway. By the end, she's tired and panting, and she still has that Why-am-I-doing-this? look on her face, but, by golly, she's doing it! And her name is November. That's inspiration!

I'm going to the gym now...

Keane: Is It Any Wonder?
The Capes: Carly (Goddess of Death)
The Killers: When You Were Young
Lilys: Claire Hates Me Threw a Day
Suburban Kids with Biblical Names: Funeral Face

November's exercise music is the cheesy “You’re the Best” by Joe “Bean” Esposito from the Karate Kid movie soundtrack .

Before I had even heard a note of The Shins' music, I saw the graphic as shown here in a music magazine and loved it. I put it on my iMac desktop at work, because it was non-offensive and pretty. The image I had, however, had no text on it, and I had it upside down, so the branches were hanging down and were not inverted.

That sounded funny in my head until I typed it.

Anyway, I didn't get into The Shins until I heard New Slang. I'm not afraid to admit I came late to the Shins fanclub, but I'm glad I did finally listen to them. At first, I preferred 2001's Oh Inverted World to 2003's Chutes Too Narrow, but I've come to like them both equally but for different reasons. I may be one of the only people to hate the movie Garden State, but I can appreciate it for the fact that it made The Shins much more widely known than they may have been without it.

Enjoy some of their older tracks from two great albums, and please buy their new album Wincing the Night Away when it's released on January 23, 2007. Check out The Shins' official website, their place on the SubPop Records website, and of course, the myspace page.

from 2001's oh inverted world:
the shins: the past and pending
the shins: girl on the wing

from 2003's Chutes Too Narrow:
the shins: gone for good
the shins: those to come
the shins: saint simon

from So Says I EP:
the shins: so says i

The Canadian folk/blues/country/gospel and distinctly unique threesome, the Be Good Tanyas, released their third CD, Hello Love, in October. Although I absolutely adore "The Littlest Birds Sing the Prettiest Songs" from their first album, Blue Horse, I normally would not have been drawn to this CD. It was the whimsical inclusion of a hidden track, a cover of Prince's "When Doves Cry" that got me to listen to it at all.

I can't claim to like the whole album, and that is based far more on my personal taste rather than any argument about the talent of this group, but I do like "Ootishenia" a lot. And "When Doves Cry" gets my vote for Favorite Cover Song of 2006. TBGT manage to retain both the sinister qualities of the original while putting their own unmistakeable signature on it.

From Hello Love (2006):

The Be Good Tanyas: Ootischenia

Favorite Cover of 2006
The Be Good Tanyas: When Doves Cry

Current tour dates:

Nov 30, 2006 8:00 PM Commodore Ballroom Vancouver, British Columbia
Dec 1, 2006 8:00 PM Alex Goolden Hall Victoria, British Columbia
Dec 6, 2006 8:00 PM The Venue Winnipeg, Manitoba
Dec 7, 2006 8:00 PM Knox United Church, Calgary
Dec 8, 2006 8:00 PM Myer Horowitz Theatre, Edmonton

The Be Good Tanyas MySpace page
Official Website
Buy at Amazon, iTunes, and eMusic.

I was digging through my CDs, looking for my other Verve CD, my Mogwai CDs, and others, when I came across Home is Where You Hang Yourself and remembered how much I liked these songs. Her Space Holiday is a one-man band consisting of Mark Bianchi, although for tours, there are usually more people and of course, a laptop.

I first came across Her Space Holiday with the release of 2000's Home is Where You Hang Yourself, an awful-sounding title, but an excellent dreamy disc. At that time in my life, I was doing a lot of long-distance driving, and this was often blaring through my car stereo speakers (The disc linked here is the 2002 re-release). I also bought 2001's Manic Expressive, with the song Key Stroke an album highlight, and 2003's The Young Machines is also an excellent disc, worth a listen or two. I haven't heard HSH's last release, The Past Presents the Future, but I've heard some good and bad things about it. I love the title, though.

According to the Her Space Holiday myspace page, HSH will release a disc and picture book, available in Japan and through the HSH store, called Telescope, on December 8, 2006. The song on the myspace page from the Telescope disc is really different from what the old HSH stuff sounded like, but it's great.


from Home is Where You Hang Yourself:
her space holiday: through the eyes of a child

from Manic Expressive:
her space holiday: key stroke
her space holiday: the ringing in my ears

from The Young Machines:
her space holiday: sleepy california
her space holiday: my girlfriend's boyfriend

from The Telescope:
her space holiday: the telescope

from myspace page:
her space holiday: xoxopandasleepytigers

Visit Her Space Holiday's official website and myspace page.

Of the two of us, I am not the Mogwai fan. Indie Mom has a bunch of CDs that she lent to me for a while, but I could never get deep into their dirge-like droning. I also greatly prefer songs with lyrics, and many of theirs don't have any.

I'm embarrassed to say that I fell asleep at a Mogwai concert one time. That's so terrible, but let me explain the circumstances. This was at the Coachella 2004, where the Pixies and Radiohead were headliners, and we had tickets for both days. No way we would miss Radiohead! There were a lot of other bands we like that year too: Death Cab, Muse, Trail of Dead, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Belle and Sebastian, and more.

We arrived early on Saturday, parked near the entrance gates, trudged back and forth across the polo grounds all day in the heat, and stayed till the end of the Radiohead show. At midnight we and about 20,000 other people all tried to leave at the same time on two tiny, one-lane roads. It wasn't working. It took us four hours to get out of there. We reparked and slept in the car part of that time.

It was such a nightmare that the next day, Indie Mom wouldn't go back. In fact, this is one of the reasons I haven't attended another Coachella since then. But I did go back by myself that Sunday, later than the day before, and I managed to sneak in frozen bottles of water, a sandwich, and an umbrella. Did I mention that it was HOT that year? I shlepped around all day again in the heat. I really wanted to stay to see Ash, an Irish band that's a long-time favorite of mine, but they weren't appearing until 10:30 p.m. Mogwai was on the same stage just before them. They started playing that slow, mournful stuff, and I sat down on the ground. Soon my head was nodding. Ash was still almost an hour away. I finally decided I couldn't do it and went home. The trip took 20 minutes.

However, with Mr. Beast, released in March of this year, Mogwai have finally come up with some tunes that I can sink my dentures (no, not really) into. On "Glasgow Mega-Snake" they have managed to beef up their signature sound with some slashing electric guitar riffs and pounding drums and cymbals. If there is one song in my Favorites of 2006 list that proves that my taste in music took root in the psychedelic 60's and hard rock 70's, this is IT.

A factoid of interest: Eugene Kelly (Eugenius, Vaselines) accompanied Mogwai on their recent European tour.


From Mr. Beast (2006):

A Favorite Song of 2006
Glasgow Mega-Snake

Friend of the Night

Visit Mogwai at MySpace
Official Mogwai Website
Buy Mogwai music at Amazon and at iTunes.

This is a day to be thankful for family, for friends, and for all the wonders of this earth. From us to you: best wishes for a peaceful day.

Red House Painters: Have You Forgotten

Glen Phillips: Released

Josh Rouse: Quiet Town

Mark Kozelek: Around and Around (a capella)

Leo Kottke: Accordion Bells

Written in the Stars

the Orion nebula, taken by NASA 's Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes

Last Sunday morning my husband and I got up before dawn to watch the Leonid meteor shower. The spectacular picture above has nothing to do with that except that we also saw the constellation Orion while we were out there. I had read that the U.S. west coast could experience the meteor shower "pre-dawn," but I guess it passed over pre-pre-dawn because we saw only about four shooting stars, although one was pretty good. Anyway, this is the premise for this "star song" mix.

I hesitated to include "Wandering Star" here because it is without a doubt THE saddest song I know, but it is also incredibly haunting and beautiful, so it stayed.

Portishead: Wandering Star from Dummy (1994)

Monster Movie: Beautiful Arctic Star from To the Moon (2004)

Gregg Yeti: Staring the Sun in the Eye See MySpace (2004)

Chungking: World of a Thousand Suns from The Hungry Years (2004)

I watched The Royal Tenenbaums again this weekend. Great film, always makes me think of Elliott Smith.

elliott smith: needle in the hay from elliott smith

elliott smith: everybody cares, everybody understands from XO

elliott smith: between the bars from either/or

elliott smith: twilight from from a basement on the hill

elliott smith: i me mine [live beatles cover]

elliott smith: jealous guy [live lennon cover]

Rockin' down the highway! Just in case you thought ol' Gramma was a hopeless shoegazer, I've chosen these specifically to help keep you awake on those long, dark roads. Buckle up, and have a safe trip.

Ash: Jack Names the Planets from Trailer (1995)

Wolf Parade: Shine A Light from Apologies to the Queen Mary (2005)

Folk Implosion: Free To Go from One Part Lullaby (1999)

Nada Surf: Hi-Speed Soul from Let Go (2003)

the Stills: Love and Death from Logic Will Break Your Heart (2003)

Wilco: Outta Site (Outta Mind) from Being There [Disc 1] (1996)

Scarce: Rains of Kansas from DeadSexy (1995)

Are you taking a trip soon, a long drive to visit the relatives for the holidays? Looking for some good tunes for the road? Let Gramma help.

This batch of road trip tunes has a little bit of country flavor that makes you think of wide vistas and open roads. Country songs are good for driving, as long-distance truckers will attest.

Pernice Brothers: My So-Called Celibate Life from Discover A Lovelier You (2005)

Grand Drive: The Real Thing UK single (2004)

Sun Kil Moon: Carry Me Ohio from Ghosts of the Great Highway (2003)

Son Volt: Tear Stained Eye from Trace (1995)

Bottle Rockets: 1000 Dollar Car from The Brooklyn Side (1994)

Warren Zevon: Play It All Night Long Live at the Customs House, 5/29/2000

Everybody sing!

Sweet Home Alabama

Play that dead band's song

Turn those speakers up full blast

Play it all night long!

I admit I have a very soft spot for "little" bands--those extremely talented musicians who are working hard but who haven't made it to the big time, maybe don't even have a recording contract. Thank goodness for the Internet, their music is nonetheless available to us. We just have to find them.

Bel Auburn is an exceptional example of one of those bands. If you like Snow Patrol, and Gary Lightbody and the Snow Patrol crew aren't keeping up with your needs, you should listen to these songs. I actually like them better than the most recent Snow Patrol songs.

Bel Auburn are five guys, including two brothers, from mid-Ohio (U.S.A.) who still have day jobs and just like to play together. How did they get this good in only three years? In that time they have released two full-length albums, with this year's Lullabies in A and C a big leap forward from 2004's Cathedrals as far as songcraft and development of an individual sound.

Any song on Lullabies in A and C would have caught my attention, but "Metropolitan (Watercolor)" is the one that's going on the Favorites of 2006 list. If you like the tracks I have posted here, I encourage you to buy this album. It is ALL good, beautiful without a hint of sappiness anywhere. Cathedrals is not quite as consistent, but there are a bunch of good songs there too.

Bright from Cathedrals (2004)

Just Love from Lullabies in A and C (2006)

A Favorite Song of 2006
Metropolitan (Watercolor) from Lullabies in A and C (2006)

Buy: Both albums are available on iTunes, and Cathedrals is also available at eMusic and at Amazon.

Bel Auburn's official Website
Bel Auburn's MySpace page has pictures, info, and more free downloads.

Tonight I will conclude my trinity of posts on Radiohead for now, although I am sure there will be more in the future. I have more songs by Radiohead than any other band, although Death Cab for Cutie, The Decemberists, Wilco, Nada Surf, and Elliott Smith aren't far behind.

Lift is an unreleased song that hasn't been played live in a very long time, since the OK Computer era. Personally, I think this song was too upbeat to be included on OK Computer. "today is the first day/of the rest of your days"

radiohead: lift

Bangers and Mash is a song that debuted on the 2006 summer tour and is one of the only real rocking songs to come out so far. Down is the New Up also seems to be a good rock tune. I can't catch much of the lyrics but the guitar sound is great.

radiohead: bangers and mash [live boston 2006]

Another new live song that debuted on the 2006 summer tour, 4 Minute Warning is also known as Bombers. It's a lovely tune with scary lyrics about people in general not being able to deal with the nightmare of the current world order. I love the fan at the end who yells "YEAH!" and then Thom's meaningless blather about what songs they're going to play next.

radiohead: 4 minute warning [live boston 2006]

Go Slowly is another short, dreamy song that I can listen to over and over again, just drowning in Thom's moaning howls. I've got a couple of versions of this live, but the one featured below is from San Diego during the 2006 summer tour.

radiohead: go slowly [live san diego 2006]

I wanted to post Follow Me Around, another song that I adored live and then was shocked to see wasn't included on Hail to the Thief. I have two or three versions, but I think the one I want is wherever I've put the Punchup at a Wedding that I want to post. I'll post both soon.

Have you had enough Radiohead for a while? I'm ready for them to come back on a West Coast tour right about now.

It must have been just after the breakup of his former band, the Flashing Astonishers, that Gregg Yeti wrote this about himself:

"Gregg Yeti plays all of the instruments on his recordings, writes and sings the lyrics and music, records it all at home on his ancient PC, produces and reproduces the releases, arranges the cover art, and lives the d.i.y. ethic because he trusts no one to ever do anything right."

That is why two of the songs posted below feature Yeti as a solo artist.

But things change. Recording alone is one thing, but Yeti found it boring to perform as a solo act. He has a new band now, the Best Lights, that includes his fiancée Jessica Rudy. They are working on a full-length album of new songs and remixes of his solo material. Due out in spring, that album will probably be released under the Best Lights without Yeti's name preceding it. He's already writing new songs for a follow-up after that.

I wasn't surprised to see among Gregg's long and varied list of influences other artists that I like: Grant Lee Buffalo, Teenage Fan Club, Nada Surf, Elliott Smith, Sun Kil Moon, Idlewild, and Iggy Pop. With that many influences, you can't sound like someone else; you have to sound like yourself. But to get an idea, think of Elvis Costello backed up by Red House Painters. That's some gorgeous guitar on "Bulding Houses," and I hope to hear more of it.

Gregg Yeti: Building Houses (For Sarafina)

Gregg Yeti: Deal With You Perfect

Gregg Yeti and the Best Lights: Laughter Be Your Slave from Star Off Machine - EP (2006)


Visit Gregg Yeti's MySpace page for info, pictures, videos, and more downloads. You can also order Star Off Machine. I did.

After alt-gramma mentioned my many versions of Punch Up At A Wedding, I started to compose another Radiohead post in my head, wherein I compared and contrasted each version, discussing the differences in the composition, tempo, and verses of each. But then I couldn't find my favorite version, which is a live set and is by far the most impressive and moving recording of this song. So then I contemplated...what to do? My course of action is clear: to post more live recordings of Radiohead songs, new and old alike.

The original version of A Punchup at a Wedding is on hail to the thief. The recording below is from West Palm Beach, Florida, in 2003. This is not my favorite recording of this song, and I'm very disappointed that I cannot find the one I like best. I'll keep looking.

radiohead: a punchup at a wedding [live west palm beach 2003]

Like Spinning Plates comes from the amazing amnesiac disc, and is especially unique because Thom sang this song backwards, lending it a very weird sound and making the lyrics nearly impossible to decipher. However, in this live recording from the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles in June 2006, Thom sings the words in the right order but retains the odd pronunciation as in the backwards version. Beautiful song.

radiohead: like spinning plates [live los angeles 2006]

The song Big Ideas [Don't Get Any] is probably recognized by anyone who saw Radiohead's DVD, meeting people is easy. It was played at live shows in the mid to late 1990's, originally intended for release on OK Computer, but did not make the final cut (obviously). Recently, the song has been somewhat resurrected in a new form, and is titled Nude. It is one of my favorite live recordings, in no small part thanks to the great line, "you'll go to hell for what your dirty mind is thinking".

radiohead: nude [live boston 2006]

Enjoy these tracks and come back for more before the end of the week.

I owe one of this year's best musical discoveries to Jonathan at Mocking Music for his August post on Alaska In Winter. If you have not read the story of Brandon Bethancourt and Alaska In Winter, click here and read how Brandon spent the winter of 2004 snowbound in a cabin in Alaska with his computer and returned to his hometown of Albuquerque with the raw materials for some amazing songs. It didn't hurt that he has some extremely talented friends to help him craft those materials into multi-layered works as intricate and lovely as Fabergé eggs.

If I were making a Favorite Album list for 2006, Alaska In Winter would be on it. If I were making a Best New Artist of 2006 list, Alaska In Winter would be on it, in competition with his fellow Albuquerquian (?), Zach Condon of Beirut. I would also have to give Alaska In Winter the award for Best Use of a Vocoder since Imogen Heap's "Hide and Seek."

You can hear Zach on trumpet on "Humming and Homeless Remix" and "Your Red Dress." You can also hear the same faded old-world glory in "Balkan Lowrider Anthem" that Condon infused into his Gulag Orkestar.

This music speaks in vivid images. "Sega" particularly sends me a distinct picture of steadily blowing snow blanketing stately firs standing in ranks on a remote mountainside. "Balkan Lowrider" swerves around green-clad hills. Droplets of piano begin "Rainy Weekend," then a throbbing rain-on-the-roof beat underscores the sad, grey-sky melody. The muffled, intertwining, sometimes quavery, and electronically distorted vocals add to rather than detract from the general ambiance of it all--beauty cloaked in mystery.

Sega Anthem Remix

Humming and Homeless Remix

Your Red Dress

Balkan Lowrider Anthem

Rainy Weekends

Visit Alaska In Winter's MySpace page for news, pictures, and more downloads.

This song is for someone special whose birthday is today.

Spoon: Me and the Bean from Girl Can Tell (2001)

Do you remember when you were small

How everybody seemed so tall?

I am your shadow in the dark

I have your blood inside my heart

Happy Birthday, Beanie!

Love,
~alt-gramma~

If I had to choose my "desert island" CDs, the ones I would play forever and never get to exchange, then I am sure they would all be Radiohead discs. The band who are often imitated but never duplicated are so diverse, I wouldn't feel as if I was listening to the same artist with each CD. And I think this is why they have stayed so popular and stayed together as a band for so long. Thom and Jonny have never tried to make the same album twice, always challenging themselves and bringing something new to each release. I have read many reviews where the writer drooled all over OK Computer, but dismissed Kid A or Amnesiac as wild experimental unlistenable noise.

To me, Kid A was the natural progression from the overwhelming success of OK Computer. Prior to the release of OkC, Radiohead was primarily known outside of their fan base as the band who played "Creep". But once the critics hailed OkC as the best album ever (and it just might be), the band was catapulted into the spotlight and the pressure to produce another masterpiece was thrust upon them. I think Thom and Co. wanted to do just that - but in a different direction from OkC. Why make a copy of something you've already done? Why try to recreate something that no one will ever possibly think is as great as what came first? Kid A is a masterpiece, but it is not OK Computer II, and I'm glad. The difference makes Kid A, and its shadow, Amnesiac (which was almost titled "Kid B"), just as wonderful works of art as was OK Computer.

all photos from radiohead.com (click for larger size)

I am waiting with some anxiety for the next Radiohead release. The live, unreleased tracks that the band debuted earlier this year are among the best I've ever heard. Enjoy some of their older music, some of the live new tracks, and then go out and reward yourself with their entire back catalogue. A friendly hint: the best way to listen to all of their albums is from the first track to the last, without skipping songs (except for Pablo Honey). You don't get the same experience unless you enjoy them as entire collections of songs, in a specific order.

radiohead: how to disappear completely from kid a
(thom's favorite! click here for the nme article)

radiohead: idioteque from kid a

radiohead: knives out from amnesiac

radiohead: gagging order from com lag

live stuff
radiohead: arpeggi [live in boston 2006]

radiohead: house of cards [live in boston 2006]

radiohead: all i need [live in san diego 2006]

I could probably turn this into an all Radiohead, all the time blog. What can I say? I'm obsessed.

Monster Movies' sound is hard to pin down specifically, and the band name is certainly not a clue. The styles on their April release, All Lost range from dreamy emo to zoomy space-rock to dance-floor electronica and everything in between.

Monster Movies' Christian Savill (formerly of Slowdive) and Sean Hewson

If you like Mew, you will probably like Monster Movies. It's similar to And the Glass-Handed Kites, in fact, in some ways I like it better. Mew gets a little too sugary when taken in large doses. I plan to explore some of MM's older albums because I think there is even more to like there.

Driving Through the Red Lights

Return to Yesterday

Shortwave from Last Night Something Happened (2002)

Stream the entire album in a flash window at their Official Website Website
Visit Monster Movie's MySpace page
Buy at Amazon, eMusic, or iTunes

I have not succeeded in bringing alt-gramma around to appreciating My Morning Jacket. And I'll admit that I think that most of their songs sound a thousand percent better live. I adored Z and I've been listening quite a bit to Okonokos. Check out some of these tracks below:

my morning jacket: pictures of you [live] from KVRX
(I downloaded this track from aquarium drunkard here - thanks a bunch to him)

my morning jacket: lay low from Z
my morning jacket: knot comes loose from Z

my morning jacket: bermuda highway

my morning jacket: tyrone [live erykah badu cover]

My Morning Jacket are currently on tour and will be in Los Angeles at the Wiltern in January.

tour schedule:

NOVEMBER
13 Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium
15 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
16 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Tea Room
17 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Tea Room
18 Austin, TX - Stubb's Bar-B-Q
20 St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
21 Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theatre
22 Louisville, KY - Louisville Gardens
24 Chicago, IL - Riviera Theatre
25 Indianapolis, IN - Clowes Memorial Hall
27 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
28 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
30 New York, NY - Roseland Ballroom
DECEMBER
01 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
02 Boston, MA - Avalon Ballroom
04 Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
05 Champaign, IL - Foellinger Auditorium
29 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
30 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
31 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
JANUARY
02 San Diego, CA - House of Blues
03 Phoenix, AZ - Marquee
05 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
06 Los Angeles, CA - Wiltern Theater
08 Seattle, WA - The Moore Theater
09 Portland, OR - The Crystal Ballroom
11 Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot
12 Denver, CO - Ogden
13 Denver, CO - Ogden

It's time I started talking about my Favorites of the Year list. I don't call it "best" of the year. I am neither a musician nor a professional in the music field, and I don't feel qualified to judge which artist is better than another. I just know what I like (although I don't always know why I like it).

I don't compile a list of favorite albums because I don't buy many albums. Not that I don't have favorite albums this year, but I don't listen to enough full albums to compile a list and make a fair comparison. I will post about the individual artists who gave me numerous favorite songs this year, but I don't make a list of them. The favorite songs list, however, is a pretty righteous deal.

To be on the favorites list, the song must have been released during the current year. Pre-releases and songs from previous years that I just discovered don't count. Re-releases in the current year do count, especially if they are appearing on a new artist's first full-length CD.

French Kicks, who in spite of their Brit-pop sound are from Brooklyn, NY, released an album this year called Two Thousand which has a track that I'm sure will be on my favorites list this year. I owe Indie Mom for introducing me to them last year with "One More Time" from The Trial Of The Century. That song is about as addictive as crack. You suspect nothing on the first listen, but then it sneaks up on you and makes you want to hear it again and again. The rest of the album turned out to be pretty good too.

The French Kicks candidate for Favorites of 2006 is "Knee High," a beat-driven rocker with their familiar smooth, cool, high vocals and some charming Oriental-sounding chord progressions. Another gem from this album is "Go On." The album as a whole probably deserves more attention than I have been able to give it. I have also included here an older song that shows their current signature sound beginning to develop back in 2002. It kind of stands out on that album.

One More Time from The Trial of the Century (2004)

A Favorite Song of 2006
Knee High from Two Thousand (2006)

Go On from Two Thousand (2006)

Trying Whining from One Time Bells (2002)

French Kicks are currently on tour in the eastern U.S.

11/11/06 Bowling Green, OH @ Howard's Club H
11/12/06 Ann Arbor, MI @ Blind Pig
11/13/06 Toronto, ON @ Mod Club (w/ Ok Go)
11/14/06 Buffalo, NY @ Mohawk Place
11/15/06 Philadelphia, PA @ TLA (w/ Ok Go)
11/17/06 Sayerville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom (w/ Ok Go)
11/18/06 New York, NY @ Irving Plaza (w/ Ok Go)
11/19/06 Washington DC @ 9:30 Club (w/ Ok Go)

Visit French Kicks on MySpace
Official Website
Buy French Kicks at Amazon and also at iTunes.

I am, like many of the music bloggers out there today, a product of the 80's. I was young during much of the 80's and missed out on some of the experience, but I did my best. I had L.A. Gear high tops and I coveted Guess? jeans. I had friends who featured what alt-gramma liked to call a "wall of hair", formed with lots of hairspray and made you look as if you were surprised by a sudden burst of air. My hair looked like Courtney Cox's hair in that Bruce Springsteen video. I knew how to fold the legs of my jeans up just so, by folding the hem on the inside seam and rolling until the jeans were too tight to roll further up my leg. It's a very unattractive look for most people, but it was cool. I remember the beginning of MTV, because our neighbors and some of my friends had cable. I also remember being the last family on the block to get a VCR, ferchrissakes, but at least we never had a Beta.

So for Halloween this year, I dressed up as an 80's chick, complete with big hair, leggings under a short skirt (which is recently becoming cool again), and I made an 80's mix CD to play on my boombox. All of these songs came from CDs I actually own, and I agonized over making this mix because there were so many excellent tracks I had to leave out. Enjoy some of the tracks from this blast from the not-so-distant past.

talk talk: it's my life from it's my life

depeche mode: stripped from black celebration

INXS: to look at you from shabooh shoobah

billy idol: rebel yell from rebel yell

new order: true faith from substance 1987
(this is the first music I remember buying with my own money, a vinyl!)

frankie goes to hollywood: relax from relax

men at work: overkill from cargo
(I remember we had this on vinyl too)

duran duran: planet earth from duran duran

Girls In Hawaii may be the most misleading band name ever. First, there are no girls in this band. Second, look at those coats and hats. Nobody in Hawaii dresses like that. These fakers are Belgian! On the other hand, they look like they wish they were in Hawaii.

I first heard Girls In Hawaii when they were guests on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic while I was painting my house prior to moving. Host Nick Harcourt had seen them at South by Southwest the month before and invited them to Santa Monica for a live set. I had to stop what I was doing to listen to the radio, put down my paintbrush, and find a scrap of paper to write the band name before I forgot it.

There is something about intertwining acoustic guitar, minor chords, whispered vocals, layered harmonies, and English in a foreign accent that is irresistable to me. Start with Belle and Sebastian and go from there. If I had heard GIH last year, they would have made my Favorites of 2005 list for sure.

Some tracks on their debut album, From Here to There, are a little too mild to be interesting. "The Ship in the Sea" and "The Fog" fall into that category. Lyrics are sometimes muffled and suffer a little from lack of skill with English. But the engaging melodies are right on target, and when the Girls punch things up, as in "Flavor" and "Short Song For a Short Mind," they pull you right in. There are more good songs than weak ones, which makes the album worth having. The new B-side release, "Fireworks," is bright and mellow at the same time and makes you wish for more like it. This album was first released in 2004, so I hope the Girls will have a new one sometime next year.

Bees and Butterflies (Down)
Organeum
Found In the Ground
Fireworks

See also "Casper" on my Halloween Mix post.

Girls in Hawaii Website
Visit GIH MySpace page
Buy at Amazon and also on iTunes

Indie Mom and I are as happy as lottery winners that we have many new visitors to Speed of Dark due to our recent addition to the blog list at Hype Machine. What new readers may not realize is that we were publishing five to six posts a week for a couple of months previously, and many of our archived posts and MP3s do not appear on the Hype roster. We are proud of our work and of our goal to share the music we enjoy.

If you are interested in these artists, use the Technorati search box at the right to search our blog site to find our older posts. Do it soon: In keeping with our posted policy and out of respect for the artists we admire, older links will be removed after a few more days.

the Dears: Raise the Dead from Gang Of Losers -B-Sides (2006)
(Concert review and photos!)

Fields: Song for the fields (live) from 7 From the Village (2006)
(Concert review and photos!)

Snow Patrol: The Only Noise from You're All I Have - single CD (2006)

J. Tillman: Minor Works from Minor Works (2006)

Joseph Arthur: Echo Park (live) at the Living Room, 7/20/04

Logh: A Sunset Knife Fight from A Sunset Panorama (2005)

Also search the archives for Death Cab for Cutie, Sunset Rubdown, Decemberists, the Shins, and Lindsey Buckingham.

We hope you'll keep coming back to Speed of Dark.

Matthew Sweet remains one of my all-time favorite guitar heroes although I've felt that some of his work in the last several years has been under-inspired. Girlfriend (1991) holds the record as the quintessiontial, must-have early alternative rock album, making Sweet the king of 90's jangle-rock.

Sweet is well-known to play cover songs, some of which are unusual choices. I heard once, but do not have, his cover of the theme of the marine-mammal TV show, "Flipper." He is also an avid fan of cartoon art, especially Japanese anime. I have an anime drawing done by a fan depicting a "super-deformed" (SD) Matthew. I got him to autograph it at a concert in 1995.

This year Sweet got together with another icon of 90's rock, Susana Hoffs of the Bangles, to release an entire CD of cover songs, Under the Covers Vol. 1. Looks like Volume 2 is to be expected. I am more partial to the tracks of Sweet's vocals than Susanna's, but I think it's a matter of personal taste. It's not surprising that a guitar master like Sweet would want to cover the songs of another guitar master--check out all the Neil Young songs in this bunch!

Cinnamon Girl
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
(Neil Young) from Under the Covers Vol. 1 (2006)
Don't Cry No Tears (live) (Neil Young) from Son of Altered Beast (1994)

Cortez the Killer(live) (Neil Young) from Girlfriend - Deluxe Edition (2006)

Magnet and Steel (Walter Egan)

American Girl (Tom Petty)

Ballad of el Goodo (Big Star) from Big Star Tribute (2006) available from eMusic

Visit (s)mall ages blog for "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?"

Visit All Time Champions blog for a truly excellent post on "Magnet and Steel" plus a download of the Walter Egan original.

Sid 'n' Susie's MySpace
Buy Under the Covers Vol. 1
Buy all Matthew Sweet at Amazon.

I have been listening to my collection of Sunset Rubdown and Wolf Parade songs, rejoicing in the yelps and yodels of Spencer Krug.

Is there anything Spencer Krug touches that isn't gold? Oh yeah...Frog Eyes. But other than that, Mr. Krug has been blessing the world with soul crushingly good music from bands such as Swan Lake, Sunset Rubdown, and of course, Wolf Parade. Sample some of the strange wonderments below.


sunset rubdown: stadiums and shrines from shut up i am dreaming

sunset rubdown: us ones in between from shut up i am dreaming

sunset rubdown: winged wicked things from live at zaphod beeblebrox july 2006

wolf parade: i'll believe in anything from apologies to the queen mary

Borat, on the left. Beirut, on the right.
Don't confuse the two!
My husband and I went to see the Borat movie today, largely on the recommendation of my step-daughter who texted her dad with the message, "Drop everything you're doing and go see this movie." She is smart and hip and generally knows what she's talking about, so we went.

Is it funny? Well, yes. Sometimes in a raw way. For example, a hairy, bare bottom in your face is both sort of funny AND kind of hard to look at. I like my humor a bit more subtle, thanks! In all fairness, it did make me laugh.

In sum:
- I don't think I've said "Oh no!" or looked away so many times during a comedy movie.
- I wonder how many times Sacha Baron Cohen was arrested for indecency and/or assault during the making of this movie.
- Feeling sorry for Pamela Anderson is a brand-new emotion for me. I appreciate movies that make me feel differently about things I thought I was sure of.

The soundtrack is lots of fun, with rollicking east-European, Balkan brass orkestar music, the kind that Zach Condon of Beirut reveres and emulates so well. In the credits, I saw both "Siki Siki Baba" by the Kocani Orkestar (MySpace) and "Ederlezi" roll by. Both are on Beirut's setlist for the current tour, which is winding up in the eastern U.S. this month. I know this from reading Jon's post at Mocking Music. Go there for more great live songs by Beirut. Also visit Music For Kids Who Can't Read Good for some fine pictures of Beirut onstage.

I haven't been able to get my friends, or Indie Mom either, for that matter, interested in Beirut's eclectic revival of simultaneously lively and melancholy Balkan tunes. At least my husband and a lot of other folks like it.

Beirut: Siki Siki Baba (live)
Beirut: Ederlezi (live)

Beirut's website states that a new EP will be available in January. Yay!
Check Beirut's MySpace page for tour information and more news.

Last year at this time, I saw Death Cab for Cutie in concert at the Wiltern, all by myself. I'd never attended a show alone before, and I'm not sure it will be something that I'll do again. alt-gramma used to attend shows by herself all the time when I was in high school, and she wasn't going to see any classical or jazz fests either. She went to see punk hardcore bands and early alternative rock bands. She was/is awesome.



I first heard "405" off of someone's music blog, and at the time, I thought it referred to the 405 freeway that runs through Los Angeles. I found out later that it refers to the 405 that runs through Seattle (is the same freeway?). I went out immediately to the local Tower Records (goodbye Tower!), where I knew I could find their back catalogue, and bought we have the facts and we're voting yes, the photo album, and something about airplanes. I later picked up you can play these songs with chords at Amoeba Records in Berkeley. Sad, really, that most people remember where they were when incredible, life-changing events happened? I remember when and where I bought CDs. But I digress...

I immediately became obsessed with them shortly before the release of transatlanticism and alt-gramma and I saw them play at Coachella, where they wore coveralls and set up their own equipment in 110+ degree heat, and put on an outstanding show.

But then I saw them at the Wiltern last year (has it really been a whole year since then?), I was disappointed by their lack of enthusiasm, the robotic way in which they performed, and the relatively short set, not to mention their latest album, which I bought because I love them, and some tracks are decent, but not as good as what came before. Maybe Ben wasn't feeling well, as some speculated. But I went home sad, not only because I had to go to the show alone.

Enjoy some early Ben Gibbard and some earlier DCfC, before all of the tweens saw them on the OC and embraced them.

all-time quarterback: why i cry from all-time quarterback

ben gibbard: the saddest story ever told from live in 2002

ben gibbard and andrew kenny: you remind me of home from home volume 5

death cab for cutie: 405 [acoustic] from forbidden love EP

death cab for cutie: this temporary life from future soundtrack for america

death cab for cutie: this charming man [smiths cover] from you can play these songs with chords

While Indie Mom is the bigger Decemberists fan of us two, I do like many of their songs, and I think Colin Meloy is a tremendous songwriter. I'm just kind of lukewarm on The Crane Wife. I enjoyed the concert we attended on October 21, but I was disappointed that my very favorite Decemberists' songs, Red Right Ankle, was not performed.

I have asked myself, what do I especially like about this song that makes it stand out from the others? Maybe that it is not so theatrical or tediously repetitive, and played on only two instruments? Maybe that it doesn't have a storyline? Maybe that it is short and simple? Yes, maybe all of that, but the simplicity is deceptive. What may stop other people from liking this song as much as I do is that they can't figure out what it's about precisely because it is so much more subtle than the more popular story-songs. Today's post is to explain what I get out of this song.

Red Right Ankle is composed of three distinct sections, sometimes written as verses, depending upon which lyric site you visit. Each section deals slightly differently with damage, protection, and healing. Link to lyrics.

Verse 1: "This is the story of your red right ankle."
We have all experienced physical injury, but in our minds the hurt sometimes becomes more important than the fact that in time it faded. This verse reminds us that the body inherently wants to put itself back together. Pain is inevitable, but so is healing.

Verse 2: "This is the story of your gypsy uncle."
There are some types of damage for which healing is not possible; for instance, once a secret is told, it cannot be hidden again. For this type of harm, the only way to avoid damage is to never allow a door to be opened.

Verse 3: "This is the story of the boys who loved you."
The person being sung to did not hide away her heart to protect it. She allowed her heart not only to be broken, but for her lovers "to rend your ventricles apart." Yet the heart is not in danger of permanent damage like the secret hide-out in Verse 2. The heart mends like the ankle and is able to love again. The singer may even be the new lover, further proof of love's resilience.

I'm not hearing songs on The Crane Wife that have this kind of depth. I want more in my mouth than cinnamon. If anyone feels differently and wants to convince me, drop a comment below.

For those of us who didn't get to hear it, here is "Red Right Ankle" live, as the Decemberists played it on October 30 in Washington, D.C. It was the first song of the encore in this concert, a place in the limelight it richly deserves.

the Decemberists: Red Right Ankle -live

I finally broke down and joined my space. Yeah, I know, I've been a myspace snob since forever. I had envisioned all myspace users as tween airheads with nothing interesting to say. But it turned out to be a wonderland of new bands who I never would have heard of if it hadn't been for myspace. Plastic Shapes is one of those up and coming bands who I'm sure you'll be listening to in the very near future.

Matt Czygan is Plastic Shapes, a one-man band from Rochester, Michigan, who contacted me through myspace and who I contacted, in return, to be interviewed for this blog. Read the interview below to find out about the metamorphosis of Plastic Shapes, what's in the future for the band, and even his bad dreams.


indie mom: I've been looking through your myspace page and plastic shapes.net, but there isn't a whole lot of information about you or the band. All I've been able to ascertain is that you're from Rochester, Michigan, and that your wife is a nurse. Tell me a little bit more about yourself and the band.

Matt Czygan: Well, the word 'band' (which I have been using myself up until recently) is a bit of a misnomer. I am--for the most part--a solo artist. I did have a former bandmate, Joe Ciavattone perform some fantastic piano work on two of my songs. An earlier incarnation of this project existed from about 2004 up until last March, which included other musicians. But, due to excessive drug use by some of the guys, as well as other problems, things were just not getting done. Thus, about seven months ago I decided to go at it alone and the music you hear now is the end result of my parting ways with them.

im: What inspired you to start The Plastic Shapes? How long have you been a band? Who is your biggest inspiration?

MC: Back in 2002, I was still reeling from my expulsion from the band that I was in (Average Zero) when I got a call from a buddy of mine, K, who was a producer. He wanted me to fly out to Washington D.C. from Detroit to form a musical collaboration of sorts. We both wanted to do something different--like nothing that was out at the time. The guys in my last band had no vision that adhered to any semblance of originality--that was the reason that they had dumped me in the first place. So naturally, I wanted to do something that was eons past what they were doing!

K and I were both heavily into the Beatles, Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Doors and the like, which we agreed had one thing in common: they were all innovative. So I ended up visiting him in D.C. a couple of times and we ended up laying down some tracks and ultimately some of the groundwork for Plastic Shapes.

K eventually left his career to move back to Detroit and in with me to start a full band. And that's when things started falling apart. We partied excessively, while little was done in the way of recording. We formed a band, yet problems with drummers kept us in a state of limbo. I got engaged and cleaned up my act, while K was entering a downward spiral of drugs and booze. His unwillingness to accept that he had lost his drinking buddy more than anything, had killed our collaborations, as well as our friendship.

im: Were you always musically inclined? Which instruments do you play?

MC: Thanks for the compliment! I never though of myself as musically inclined. I always felt I was a pretty average learner and I really had to work at music get to where I'm at. I play guitar, bass and sing--as well as arrange all of the drums and synths. I'm a one-man band!

im: What music did you listen to as you were growing up?

MC: Metal all the way. Iron Maiden, Megadeth, old Metallica, Van Halen, Led Zeppelin. I still listen to that stuff. Van Halen is why I play guitar in the first place and Megadeth is probably the reason why my music is so political!

im: What is the significance of the name "Plastic Shapes"?

MC: Well, it has much to do with how I perceive many people in society. Self-absorbed and foney--they're "plastic". Also, it comes from nightmares that I had as a child involving geometric shapes trying to eat me!

im: What was the first album/cassette/CD that you bought?

MC: Van Halen 5150 and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge at the same time when I was 12 years old.

im: What music have you been listening to lately? What's the best album to come out this year so far?

MC: I'm so out of the loop when it comes to newer music, but there are a few new bands I really dig. Ladytron, The Shins and Franz Ferdinand are bands I've been listening to lately. I really like Iron Maiden's new album "A Matter Of Life And Death".

im: What's next for The Plastic Shapes?

MC: Right now I'm working on finishing up this first full-length album that I am producing. There will be 10 songs, eight of which are completed or are near completion. The songs featured here have yet to be mastered. I'm planning for an early 2007 release. Once the album is wrapped-up, I intend to find some new musicians to perform this music live with.

im: Where can I (and others) buy your music?

MC: Well, for now, the album has yet to be finished, but it will certainly be available at my official website: plasticshapes.net and will probably be available at CDbaby.com for now. It may be featured elsewhere, but those arrangements have yet to be made.

Thanks, Matt, for letting me interview you. Check out Plastic Shapes myspace page for more songs and info!

plastic shapes: changing seasons
plastic shapes: peeking through the clouds

Fall has finally arrived to southern California. Although this area is not famous for its autumn foliage, some trees do assume gold and red colors. The air is crisper when not clouded with smoke from late October fires, and coyotes sing at night in the hills behind our house. I selected a few autumn-flavored songs suitable for the Day of the Dead, which is November 1 according to Mexican tradition.

When I was recently going through Badly Drawn Boy songs for a previous post, I saved this song for today for its appropriate lyrics: "To live in the hearts of those you loved is not to die."

Badly Drawn Boy: Take the Glory from One Plus One Is One (2004)(lyrics)

Laika: Breather from Sounds of the Satellites (1997)

the Airfields: The Turning of the Leaves from Laneways EP (2006)

Azure Ray: November from Saddle Creek 50, Disc 2 (2003)

M. Ward: Poor Boy from The Transfiguration of Vincent (2003)

Rosebuds: Leaves Do Fall from Birds Make Good Neighbors (2005)