Now Playing #3
I realize I have been going on and on about Gérard Manset lately but here’s some more…though La Mort D’Orion is dark and it doesn’t really motivate you to do anything besides hide within your own shell or cave and not really face the world for awhile, it’s also brilliant and worth hearing many times. At the same time that I find it almost unbearably beautiful, I can’t live without it anymore. It’s inspiring…wholly original and flawless. Yes, flawless. And rarely can you say that about an album, can you?
I had been listening to this Mice Parade and the new one (s/t) to prepare myself for last night’s show, which ended up being wonderful. For those who don’t know Mice Parade, think of an even more organic sounding Animal Collective with alot of layered instrumentals, some vocals with the lead singer KristÃn Anna Valtýsdóttir from Múm for some of them (note: it was unfortunately a different female lead last night. A couple of years ago, I saw Mice Parade with Kristin) and just a real wholesome texture. I still don’t understand why thia band is so under-rated.
Dungen’s Tio Bitar surprised me. I had seen them play Chicago’s Intonation festival almost two years ago and though they presented themselves visually as a Swedish version of T-Rex, the music failed to impress me in any way shape or form. I found it too heavy and male frankly and I went and sought out some water to relieve my thirst after a few songs and photos. Tio Bitar is definitely more melodic and psychedelic and as Cinchel pointed out, it reminds you a bit of Welsh musician Gruff Rhys’s (of Super Furry Animals fame) material a bit. I’ve only had a chance to listen to it once but I expect I will really enjoy it even more as time goes on.
Low’s Things We Lost in the Fire is definitely still my very favorite Low album even though I adore everything they have ever done. This one to me has a special place in my heart from when I found solace within its chord progressions while at university. It’s sense of desolation at times is almost frightening but it touches on a real delicate vulnerability. In some ways, even though I feel at times a despair from it, the melodies esp. those provided by Mimi Parker herself are very soothing. This is an album that lulls me into an acceptable solitude and even into at times a peaceful slumber as there is a real comfort in the familiar.
Lavender Diamond’s Imagine Our Love is one I picked up Saturday before Sloan at Reckless Records and I have to say I find the arrangements super lush and melodic. At times, it even takes on a religious tone. The female vocals are absolutely breathtaking at points. I’m really looking forward to seeing them play next Monday at The Empty Bottle.
The Fratelli’s Costello Music is one I also picked up Sat. though after I did I remembered having heard “Flathead” in a commercial and being instantly drawn to the catchy Scottish riffs. The album overall is very solid though I prefer the faster songs to the ballads where there are barely any consonants pronounced…sentimentality has it’s place afterall in any album and Scotland’s Idlewild tries to find this balance as well. Sometimes it succeeds and at other times, you just frankly would rather rock out. (unless you’re under fifteen blankets listening to Low)
I’m sure most people would not argue that Jean-Claude Vannier’s L’Enfant Assassin Des Mouches is a classic…it’s another one of those flawless albums mainly because of the arrangements of the pieces and because so many other musicians have drawn inspiration from it, it’s worth returning to for that reason alone. It has it’s reservation in a special place of music history and it makes you appreciate what power music in general has.
Last but definitely not least is Dominique A’s L’Horizon…..oh how I love my French lyrics and though Dominique A does not have what Manset or Philippe Crab or Orouni or Dutronc or Biolay or…well, I could go on forever really but he’s on his own just great. You really just sense the greatness of his songs. This could be a desert island album for me and at times I am drawn to it immensely..I love the way the songs just build at times and the sound of his voice.