Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream

It’s absolute, my friends. CSVMAD has turned one year old! The past year has been chock full of great music, and I have to say that although I was hesitant at first about even starting a music blog, I’ve had such a delight doing it. Call me over-enthusiastic, but there’s something about embellishing in another’s music that makes me feel as though I somehow had something to do with it. Each Sufjan lyric, each Andrew Bird pluck of the violin, each chilling note of a Nick Drake masterpiece–these are the things that we all help create. These are the reasons why we listen in the first place.

Here’s to another fantastic year,
Benji

What would this celebration be without a mix? Here’s one song for each month, each having to deal with the number one.

Carl Turns One Playlist:
1. Feist – 1 2 3 4
2. J. Ralph – One Million Miles Away
3. Wilco – One By One (Live)
4. Phoenix – One Time Too Many
5. Tina Dico – One
6. Three Dog Night – One is the Loneliest Number
7. Annie – Me Plus One
8. David Gray – The One I Love
9. Doves – One of These Days
10. Coldplay – Square One
11. Feist – One Evening (VW Mix)
12. Nick Drake – One of These Things First

Keep on reading!!

“Maybe the sun will come out today/Maybe the clouds will go away,” croons Jeff Tweedy on the first track of Sky Blue Sky. Indeed, it seems like Wilco has finally turned its head away from the dark depression that Tweedy embodied for most his adult life. This album shows a much softer, happier side of Tweedy and Wilco, ripe with delightful guitar solos (you should have seen them in concert!) and rather trippy lyrics. Some have critiqued Wilco for never having lyrical substance, but to say this is to completely disparage the care that they have taken to make their words sound important. They still manage to do the same with Sky Blue Sky, but their message is just a littler clearer, a little more direct.

Perhaps it’s that directness that is so appealing about Sky Blue Sky. Many listeners have cited this album as Wilco’s worst, but I would say that these individuals never really understood Wilco in the first place. This is a success story, and SBS is the part in the movie where they all the hard work and dedication pays off. Listen to “Impossible Germany” and tell me that Tweedy doesn’t have a smile on his face when that 3 minute guitar solo just frees itself from the speakers. Even in person, they all look content with where they are musically–and perhaps it’s that balance, that calmness that upsets people.

But ignore those fools and play SBS loud. You’ll hear the sweet-talkin’ Tweedy’s sensitive side on “Hate it Here”, and you won’t be able to get that Theologian-like “Walken” out of your head. Play the Neil-Youngesque “What Light”, and you’ll be sold that this album is as solid as the defining Yankee Hotel Foxtrot or A Ghost is Born.

So forget what you’ve been told. Go and get yourself a copy of Sky Blue Sky.
Listen to “Impossible Germany” (4.8/5)
Listen to “What Light” (4.4/5)

I’ve always had dreams of driving late at night with only the city lights accompanying my twilight excursion through darkness. These dreams seem strange to me in retrospect, as if they were missing something integral that would make them more realistic, tangible. I just assumed that if I were driving that I’d have a soundtrack to go along with the trip–nothing bombastic or ornate. I would want something soft and brooding-something that would begin slowly and gradually build up into a symphonic crescendo without being too dramatic. What I needed for these lacking dreams was Boxer, the new album from The National.

I must admit that I wasn’t a huge fan of The National’s prior release, Alligator–I found it static, stagnant, and relatively uninteresting. But I doubt everything I decided a couple of years ago after Boxer. From the get go, Matt Berninger’s baritone vocals are perhaps the most fascinating set of pipes I’ve heard in a while, as I try to draw comparisons but come up empty. His voice conjures images of an earnest poet who has plenty of worthy things to be said. Berninger throws around such vivid, subtle imagery ( ‘Standing in an empty tuxedo with grapes in my mouth’), that it’s a shame that it sometimes gets overshadowed by the symphonic environment that the band creates. But what may be even more impressive is the way the quartet can suddenly shift from blaring trumpets (see “Ada”) to the soft chords of the piano with such grace. Indeed, The National know how to make their sound work for them, employing a variety of instruments and some interesting rhythms as well. It seems to me that they have a real appreciation for the music they’re creating–something that gets lost in the mix most of the time.

So I’ll stop the babble–go and get Boxer.
Check out these videos.
Listen to “Ada” (5/5)
Listen to “Squalor Victoria” (4.8/5)

The Go! Team–”Grip Like a Vice” (via IGIF)
Everybody’s favorite UK garage-playground band The Go! Team has released the first song off their new untitled album. With all the intensity that appeared on their debut, this song means good things for the coming album. The production is a little cleaner this time around, but still retains that lo-fi sound. Check it, yo.

Josh Rouse–”Sweetie” (courtesy of MOKB)
CSV darling Josh Rouse is releasing a new album Country Moose, City House on July 31st. And every Monday he’s previewing a new song off the album. Last week was “Sweetie” and this week is “Snowy”. So go and listen. Go on.

I want to do something a bit different for CSV since there seems to be a sudden flood of great new music and videos. Since summer is fast approaching, I thought I would cancel the class reading for today. However, I still expect you all to look over this concise study guide. It’s so easy some might call it cheating! You might want to put it on the inside of your nalgene or program it into your ti-89 or something clever like that for the test. Just don’t get caught!

The Video Countdown:
5. Tokyo Police Club – “Cheer it On”
4. Beastie Boys – “Off the Grid”
3. Spoon – “The Ghost of You Lingers”
2. Mutemath – “Typical” check out the making of the video
1. The Chemical Brothers – “Do it Again”

The mp3 Countdown
5. Rocky Votolato – “Postcard from Kentucky”
4. Travis – “Selfish Jean”
3. White Rabbits – “The Plot”
2. The National – “Fake Empire”
1. Elliott Smith – “High Times”

Extra Credit: The Basement – “I Just Caught a Face”

If you’re just so studious that you can’t bear taking a day off from the required reading check the archives. There has to be something you missed. Cheers!

I just recently finished getting through my favorite music magazine Paste, just in time for the new one that I got in the mail today. But with that in mind, I’m gonna cheat a little bit and share with you some songs that Paste thinks you should know. My reason for doing so is to give you a more rounded approach to the indie scene, giving some kudos to artists about whom I won’t write full reviews.

So with that in mind:

Amy LaVere-”Killing Him” (4.6/5)
Description: Cute-voiced songstress has lots to say over the lazy Sunday strings.

Joseph Arthur & The Lonely Astronauts-”Diamond Ring” (4.55/6)
Description: The prolific Joseph Arthur (watch out Ryan Adams) aspires to some more upbeat pop goodness.

Kristoffer Ragnstam-”Man Overboard” (4.4/5)
Description: Swedish singer-songwriter shows off his pop sensibilities on this moody track.

If you’re thinking this is a repeat post about The Clientele, well I’m sorry to tell you that this is not the case. Client are a female British trio that craft electronic songs that are sure to make you think you’re a detective with hair like Don Johnson. Now this won’t suddenly enable you to take down bad guys in Miami (see Miami Vice), but Client’s new release Heartland will surely get you grooving.

Heartland is a collection of electronic rock anthems, almost as if The Cardigans had been given a littler edgier sound. Their sound borders on that surreality that The Cardigans executed so well, but they manage to add more volume to their tracks. These songs have that extra bass, that extra synth, that extra attitude that makes this album more than just your standard electronic album. It’s a difficult task for electronica to appeal to mass audiences without sounding like house or techno, and Client’s Heartland certainly overcomes such a hurdle by using the anthem model–that is, the beats are relatively simple but they strike a note within the listener. The crescendos in each of these songs blend seamlessly with the somewhat redundant verses.

That said, Heartland has the right intentions and Client does a relatively good job of executing booming rhythms. Unfortunately, this album just seems destined for speakers in GAP or some other clothing derivative.

Go and buy Heartland.
Listen to “Drive” (4.6/5)
Listen to “Where’s the Rock and Roll Gone” (4.4/5)

Andrew Bird came to his alma mater Northwestern University to play an exclusive show for students, where he dabbled in pizzicato and conversation for a couple of fascinating hours. I was fortunate to have been able to sit front row with my buddy Jed, as we witnessed the fancy footwork and idiosyncrasies of Mr. Bird.

For someone who proclaims himself to be so damn “easy going” in his song “Why?”, it might come as a surprise as to how stubbornly good Andrew Bird really is. He isn’t necessarily the greatest of showmen, but I suppose that’s part of his act. His perfectionism and his impeccable concentration allow him to elevate himself (note: he nearly played half the show on his tippy toes) to a level that transcends that petty artist-audience banter. It also seemed as though Bird had some special connection to the Pick-Staiger auditorium in which he also played as a student at NU. It was clear that it was nostalgic for him to be back at Northwestern, in the acoustically phenomenal auditorium where his songwriting travails began. At the very end of the show, he decided to play “Weather Systems” with the justification that he thought it would sound right in the venue. But really, that was him wanting to hear his own songs in a space that could truly appreciate them, musically and lyrically.

Indeed, it was a rather fantastic show, as he furiously tapped his feet on the handful of loop pedals at his disposal. Not to mention his sudden kicks and jumps, the rotating speakers, or even his simple “Nervous Tic Motion of the Head to the Left”. Each song was carefully chaotic, as he went from guitar to violin at an almost frantic pace. Anyone else would have looked awkward or hurried, but Bird made it seem effortless, surreal. Even more, he drenched he audience in a slew of delightful sonic matter. I felt enveloped, suspended in his violin, his lyrics in my mouth, as if I had something to do with the creation of his sound.

Among the various highlights of the show were his latest “Imitosis” and the now classic “Nervous Tic Motion of the Head to the Left”. “Why?” came across more involved and intricate than I remember–the looping was done perfectly. Bird even tried out a new song, “Sectionate Cities”, which could have easily been another track on Armchair Apocrypha. “I figured I would try a new song on you all,” he remarked to eager fans with the disclaimer, “there’s no better to place to choke, I guess”. Bird also shared some of his own stories about his songs; perhaps the most interesting was that “Why?” was about his college roommate failing to get a rise out of Andrew. Or, as he explained, that much of his songwriting starts with questions (he’s much more interested in the questions) and a couple of words whose tonal quality interest him. From there, it’s that quirky Birdness that takes over and makes his songs what they are.

Listen to Andrew Bird- “Why?“
Listen to Andrew Bird-”11:11 (Live)“

As I watched Wilco in a gymnasium turned rock club Friday night, I was continually impressed with the band’s impeccable time and seamless transitions. Kudos to the whole band for an impressive, well-rehearsed set, but I would like to focus on the man behind the kit, Glenn Kotche. Naturally, Kotche is most well-known for his work with Wilco. Seeing him live is a real tribute to his tasteful musicianship. He never sticks out or overplays, but makes his presence heard by staying “in the pocket,” and adding tom-tom and cymbal flourishes to spice up Wilco’s guitar-driven tracks.

Kotche, who studied percussion at University of Kentucky, has released his own solo albums and collaborated with a number of varied musicians, including experimental guitarist and music producer Jim O’Rourke, and jazz bassist Darin Gray.

Kotche’s solo efforts, the most recent came out in 2006, show a side of him that exists only latently in his work with Wilco. While he dabbles with electronics and more obscure percussion instruments with Wilco, he really lets his creative juices out in his solo albums. Check out his website to listen to some tracks from his experimental, improvisatory solo albums, and to learn more about his side projects (including an experimental rock trio with Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy and Jim O’Rourke).

I’m veering a little off course with this post, as I get ready for two awesome shows coming to Northwestern. We’ve got Wilco coming Friday (about to release Sky Blue Sky…more on that soon) and then we’ve got His Birdness (Andrew Bird) coming on Monday night.

But I’m in a Chicago kind of mood tonight, and so I figured I’d give a little taste of some cool Chicago blues from Jimmy Rogers’ “Chicago Bound” and the harmonica stylings of Charlie Musselwhite on “Chicago Sunset”.

I’m sure you’ll enjoy these goodies, but just in case you’re not totally satisfied, I’m gonna give you a little Wilco love as well.

Check out Jimmy Rogers–Chicago Bound
Check out Charlie Musselwhite–Chicago Sunset
Wilco-I’m Trying to Break Your Heart (Live Version)