What are you listening to and WHY might anyone be interested? (Vol. XIII)
Posted by: Richard Dane on 01 January 2017
2017 has arrived today, so time to start this thread afresh.
Last year's thread can be found here;
On vinyl...
Porcupine Tree - Fear of a Blank Planet, on vinyl...
Bert Schurink posted:
Most likely a very stupid question, but: how do Ou do these „Screenshots“ ?
what I do (and find quite complicated) is
- goto qobuz, find the record I am listening to
- click on the cover and click on „display image in new tab“, and change to that tab
- move to the address line and use „copy“
- change back to the edit window on the Naim forum, use „insert“
are you guys using something I don’t have ?
From the very last day of 1979, The Return of The Durutti Column by the Durutti Column (Factory FACT 14). One of my very favourite LPs, ever. Basically a guitar (Vini Reilly) and a drum machine and Martin Hannett on production (with very occasional drums and bass).
This is the first UK pressing, in the infamous sandpaper sleeve glued togeher by members of Joy Division. It was just sitting there looking at me (as it has a sandpaper sleeve, it can't be stored with any other album), begging to be played.
So I obliged.
Jeremy Denk - Bach: Goldberg variations
Untill tonight I had never heard of Jeremy Denk. However, his interpretation of the Goldberg variation is very good imo.
Allmusic.com:
Jeremy Denk's revelatory recording of J.S. Bach's Goldberg Variations is a special treat, not only because of his penetrating exploration of this keyboard classic, but also for his insightful "liner notes," which are provided on a companion video DVD, rather than printed in a booklet. Denk is a versatile pianist, as well as an essayist, blogger, chemist, and recipient of the MacArthur Foundation "genius grant," and he has performed the Goldberg Variations many times in concert, devoting considerable thought and energy to this masterpiece over the years. Approaching the work from many angles, Denk's understanding of Bach's music is multifaceted, and he reveals the music's brilliance with the care of a jeweller. Playing with a generally bright tone, his touch is subtle and carefully considered, and his treatment of Bach's counterpoint is highly focused; each line is given its independence and transparence by clean execution, nuanced phrasing, and minimal use of the pedals. There's a kind of euphoria in his playing that isn't expressed in a rush of emotions or loud dynamics, but rather in the simple joy of playing cleanly and briskly, with each passage feeling intellectually coherent and emotionally honest. This is an invigorating performance, and it is highly recommended for Denk's clarity of vision and original interpretation.
Another mighty fine album from 1970, one of SS's finest.
Now Playing.........
Sean Rowe - New Lore
Streaming on TIDAL........ Love Sean's voice, lyrics, and music. Having heard him for the first time this year I ended up purchasing all of his CD's. Definitely worth the time to give a listen
Review found on American Songwriter by here:
Some singers don’t look like the sound. Sean Rowe is not one of them. It’s hard to imagine his dark, bellowed baritone emerging from anyone other than a burly, bearded, bear of a man who wouldn’t be out of place at a Harley-Davidson convention.
In contrast to his somewhat intimidating exterior with tired eyes, bushy, greying whiskers, and a cavernous, rumbling yet oddly calming voice, Rowe digs deep, creating some of the most touching, reflective, introspective music you’re likely to hear from anyone who seems like they would rather arm wrestle you than gaze into the depths of your soul. When he unexpectedly shifts into a sweet falsetto on songs such as “The Salmon,” against swelling, portentous strings, the effect is jolting, riveting and unusually affecting.
Those recently introduced to Rowe through the stark, acoustic “To Leave Something Behind” featured in the Ben Affleck film The Accountant will need to adjust to his fifth release’s far more robust vibe. Producer/engineer Matt Ross-Spang (Jason Isbell, Margo Price) layers chamber strings and soulful, near gospel backing singers atop Rowe’s basic guitar accompaniment, expanding these folk songs into an almost cinematic experience. When Rowe grabs onto a lyric as darkly moving as “I knelt down in desperation/ I felt around for something real” with moaning, bluesy slide guitar, finger picked licks and nightmarish sound effects, the effect is intense and spellbinding.
In the midst of this emotional storm comes the slick, soulful R&B of “Newton’s Cradle,” a readymade for radio song combining the juiciest aspects of Philadelphia International and Motown labels atop disco strings wrapped into one irresistible four minute burst. It’s an anomaly, seemingly from another album altogether, but also a much needed breather interspersed with the more gripping style Rowe favors throughout.
New Lore confirms Rowe’s status as one of Americana’s most compelling and distinctive artists and, even with his imposing mountain man appearance, a sweet, warm hug for sore ears.
(1994)
Another very fine album from the Canadian rocksters that very few folk on this side of the pond seem to know of or appreciate.
Mark Knopfler - Sailing to Philadelphia
Remarkable album...........sorry.
....then Joss Stone - The Soul Sessions
....and now continuing the Jossfest with Water For Your Soul
Stone me......our Joss can belt out a choon.
l'll get me coat.
Martin, The Work of Martin Hannett
A compilation (on Factory) of the work of Martin Hannett, released not long after his untimely death in 1991. Original UK vinyl.
1:56 BUZZCOCKS - Breakdown
2:50 SLAUGHTER AND THE DOGS - Cranked Up Really High
2:49 JOHN COOPER CLARKE - Suspended Sentence
4:54 JOY DIVISION - She's Lost Control
3:05 JILTED JOHN - Jilted John
2:47 A CERTAIN RATIO - Do The Du
3:41 ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK - Almost
3:47 U2 - 11 O'Clock Tick Tock
5:29 NEW ORDER - Everything's Gone Green
3:51 HAPPY MONDAYS - Lazyitis
4:19 WORLD OF TWIST - She's A Rainbow
4:28 NEW FAST AUTOMATIC DAFFODILS - Get Better
3:02 THE HIGH - More
What a discovery !
Bill Frisell, Thomas Morgan - Small Town
played live at the Village Vanguard and warm honey in my ears. I am not trying to be funny. This may well be my record of the year, and I have only listened to half of it. Sorry, [@mention:1566878603919322]...
LP - Vertigo 1975 : )
Francis Rossi - guitar, vocals / Rick Parfitt - guitar, keyboards, vocals
Alan Lancaster - bass, guitar, vocals / John Coghlan - drums
Rock on, Debs. You gotta love a bit of Quo...
Tony2011 posted:Rock on, Debs. You gotta love a bit of Quo...
Oh, yes. And a great band to see live.
Haim Ronen posted:
Catching up on [@mention:1566878603881681] ‘s list with his music of the year and dipping into Gefion and now Streams, both with Jakob Bro, and not dissimilar to what Frisell does, but Bro is not Frisell, and Frisell is still the master. Still: complaining on a very high level, as Streams isn’t bad, at all.
After a hectic day looking after grandchild number 1 (luckily no speaker related accidents today !) i've got an hour or so to relax. I've recently started to really appreciate this lady's work after starting with 'Mental Illness' and really enjoying it.
Now listening to this recent arrival...
Aimee Mann - Lost in Space
MDS posted:Tony2011 posted:Rock on, Debs. You gotta love a bit of Quo...
Oh, yes. And a great band to see live.
PARDON?
YOU'LL HAVE TO SPEAK UP A BIT! 
Now Playing........
Lee Ann Womack - The Lonely, The Lonesome, and The Gone
Streaming on TIDAL........ A recent release and I have had out for a few spins. Love Lee Ann's voice, great lyrics/songs and a fantastic group of musicians backing her up. Another favorite of this year releases, just fantastic and worth the time to give a listen!
Review by Brittney McKenna at NPR Music found here:
Lee Ann Womack's new album The Lonely, The Lonesome & The Gone begins, appropriately, with just her voice. "All the Trouble" starts with a nearly a capella verse from Womack, evoking an eerie calm that foreshadows the track's forthcoming lyrical storm. By track's end, her vocals sparkle like lightning, sinewy gold melodies crackling against a rough and tumble backdrop.
Womack has long been known for her singing voice, a pedigree that extends back to her mainstream country roots in the late 1990s and has been a primary focus of her career ever since. And rightfully so. The Texas-based artist can belt with the best of them, but outshines many of her contemporaries with an unrivaled vocal agility. Her startling precision is matched only by her passion, a combination that lends even the slightest quaver in her voice an emotional resonance that would be lost on lesser talents.
On this new LP, though, Womack reminds us that she's much more than just a pretty voice. Start-to-finish, The Lonely, The Lonesome & The Gone has a cinematic quality to it, one buoyed both by lush, dynamic arrangements and by a skillfully executed sequence, which effortlessly ebbs and flows between torch songs (the smoldering "He Called Me Baby") and Texas twang (the jagged crunch of "Wicked"), giving equal credence to the bedroom (the sweet and clever "End of the World") and the bar (the laid-back shuffle of "Bottom of the Barrel"). Produced by Womack's husband Frank Liddell and aided by crack co-writers like Waylon Payne and Adam Wright, the album finds her loose and at ease; in many instances, it sounds like she's having a damn good time.
A cover of Andrew Combs' "Shine On Rainy Day" (a co-write with Brent Cobb that appears on his 2016 album of the same name as well as on Combs' 2015 album All These Dreams as "Rainy Day Song") shows the pair to be cross-generational kindred spirits, each with a voice crystalline enough to shine through dusky arrangements but raw enough to convey the track's emotional heft. Another standout cover is closing track "Take the Devil Out of Me," a 1959 George Jones gospel tune; Womack's left-of-center take on it could soundtrack a Southern gothic tent revival.
That short track ends as quickly as it begins, fading out with just Womack's voice over a jangly electric guitar. Though The Lonely, The Lonesome & The Gone is bookended by stirring vocal performances, it's an album that shows Womack to be one of American roots music's foremost auteurs, one with a compelling voice for storytelling and the vision to use it to powerful effect.
1998 - Tidal...
sjust posted:Haim Ronen posted:Inspired by Stefan's latest posting:
Catching up on [@mention:1566878603881681] ‘s list with his music of the year and dipping into Gefion and now Streams, both with Jakob Bro, and not dissimilar to what Frisell does, but Bro is not Frisell, and Frisell is still the master. Still: complaining on a very high level, as Streams isn’t bad, at all.
I would recommend that you check out Ballardeering, Time, and December Song from Jakob Bro if you haven't already. I believe the original mention of Ballardeering came from Haim Ronen. I ended up ordering the CD's below from Denmark since I could not find them in the US anywhere.
Jakob & Bill together is just fantastic. Paul Motian was scheduled to appear on Time as well but passed shortly before the scheduled recording. Some wonderful music that may have that warm honey dripping in your ears once again!