3/5/12

A friend of mine had an extra ticket to a Matt Nathanson concert last night, and it was't until I got there that I realized a)how badly I needed a concert b)how liking Matt Nathanson is a really, really good idea.

You won't find trendsetters at his shows, you won't find the kind of people who flock to Pitchfork darlings with stupid names and laptop performances. You will find music listeners who are engaged, connected, and full of spirit for life and physical passion, qualities Nathanson sweats from every pore.

Homie's recorded nine albums. That's gotta be hard.

He was unbelievably entertaining. I saw him play acoustic once, maybe six years ago, and getting to check him out in front of a live band was a different experience, although not necessarily a worse one. Fortunately it didn't interrupt his intimacy with the audience, and he told the audience what the songs were about before he played them in the majority of instances. His preface ranged from simple - "This is about fucking" - to elaborate backstory, like when he launched into "Bent" after telling the story of a girl he once "knew" and their attempts at "rekindling."

"You turn, turn, turn, turning me on

Like a slow fire burn 

Know that it's wrong

Still I run, run, run, run right into you
"



Oh look, says audience member in their head. This guy has experiences, and he writes about them. I've long believed Matt Nathanson is an expert in biting, bitter honesty, tossing out lines that cut straight to the intersection of desire and despair. I could see where people would throw him the "bro" category, given all the sex-inspired talk and acoustic strumming, but poetry is poetry is poetry.

"And I'll forget about you long enough
To forget why I need to"



I was particularly peaked when he told us certain songs were penned after hearing a friend say a simple sentence or so - "I'm nobody's girlfriend," for example. Good songwriting, while springing from the depths of the soul and manufactured in creative consciousness, does not have to run hand-in-hand with pain, pleasure, discomfort, anger, or any other particular emotion. Simple discovery, and curiousity, can do the trick, if said writer is willing to peel back layers of the mind to tap into what's unseen, and often unsaid.

As for the musicianship, one of my favorite moments in the show was after an acoustic duo bit with Matt and his guitar player, Aaron. The rest of the band joined on stage, but the bass player brought a stand-up, the keyboard player an accordion, and the drummer emerged from the back-stage corner drummers are typically confined to, and took a brush and a stick to a djembe at the front of the stage. Sweet! They played a couple songs that way, but only after a jam session of La Bamba.

I was not close enough to see *what* instruments they had, though I continue to notice more and more about what gear is used when (I was close to criticizing the DJ at a karaoke outing the other night, he was running a cheap mic through a huge PA and the balance was a disaster, but the important thing is that I noticed).

I should also mention the delightful opener, Rachel Platten, who sang gorgeous, played piano like a fiend, and exhilarated the audience with an adorable pep. I wanted to hang out with her, especially after a surprisingly soaring cover of "Gin and Juice" that made me want to be 16 and riding in cars with illegal drivers and boys I had crushes on. I hope to hear more from her in the future.

All in all, I was thrilled to see some great live music, from an artist I've long respected. To be sure, this is his first appearance on this blog and for that I am sorry. Hopefully this review, and corresponding inspiration, makes up for it.

3/1/12

“What the really great artists do is they're entirely themselves. They're entirely themselves, they've got their own vision, they have their own way of fracturing reality, and if it's authentic and true, you will feel it in your nerve endings.”
― David Foster Wallace

2/29/12

A few things about this NME list about the 50 best choruses:

*Oh my god, oh my god, could you BE any more British?
*Adele should not be on this list. That chorus ("Someone Like you") isn't that good.
*"Enter Sandman?" I'll take it.
*"Sex on Fire" chorus is not > than "Use Somebody" chorus melody-wise, it just has sex in the lyrics.
*"Pride(In the Name of Love)" could totally be higher.
*I understand lists need to take into account new things, in an attempt to shape what will still be cool or insert your knowledge & relevancy but really...Lana Del Rey at 11? That song isn't *that* good. I mean, maybe it's only because I've heard it once, when she sang (horribly) on SNL, but I've seen way more talent out of hick bar open mic nights. Even from people who weren't my friends.

But, beyond those gut reactions, I have to say I love the concept driving this list. Who doesn't love a great chorus? Sub-par verses (too wordy, too spoken or too bland) can easily be redeemed by a great chorus - in fact, some songs are only *worth* listening to because of the chorus - for example, Toto, earning a well-deserved #32 on this list. We all know that chorus - it's soo nice - but sing a verse? Could't if you gave me tequilia.

Also, a really solid built-up, with plenty of tension and bite, can be perfectly topped off with a line or two performed with enough power. For example, one of my favorites off the list(at 33):

"You can go your own way, go your own way
You can call it another lonely day
You can go your own way,
go your own way"
~Go Your Own Way
Fleetwood Mac, Rumours

Not too over-the-top, but it gets the point across. Doesn't it? The throw-away line at the end is trademark Lindsey Buckingham bitterness. I love.

Beyond those impressions, I have to say I love lists. Journalists do, you see, they are easy to compile, and readers love them because why read 25 two-sentence paragraphs instead of 50 kitschy one-liners?

Also, I will be tracking this playlist down on Spotify when I'm working tomorrow afternoon, and in need of a midday inspiration burst.

(My tags indicate I haven't mentioned Spotify on this blog yet, which is a bit of a shame because it makes at-home listening oh-so fun. All my songs, and all the other ones, too? It's pretty fantastic, and I'm really happy I joined. Should 2012 see me make more money, I'll maybe even subscribe.
Naw. I won't, actually.)

2/28/12

A new favorite takes on an old one. I was always sort of regretful for not being more familiar with the rest of Bonnie Raitt's catalog, save for Nick of Time, Something to Talk About, and maybe a few others if I heard them...but I know she is a guitar master with a gorgeous set of blues pipes.

But this song. This song. It was the soundtrack to many a dance rehearsal, a last track on several mix CDs burned pre-high school graduation.

You can't listen to this and not identify. Not if you've had a heart, or a failed relationship, or a failed attempt at one. Not if you've been alone. Not if your head betrays your better interests by bombarding you with thoughts, memories, fantasies, of the person you love and can no longer show them.

In Bon Iver's gifted falsetto, and a new solo arrangement, I can love it all over again. That voice! Certainly it's not for all listeners' tastes but I think it's quite beautiful, and I'm thrilled to see him pay homage to a musician who is often not given enough credit - at least, colloquially - for creating some really masterful contributions to the modern pop song, and it's ability to rise from blues.

"lay down with me,
tell me no lies,
just hold me close,
don't patronize

cause i can't make you love me
if you don't
you can't make your heart feel something it won't
here in the dark
in these final hours
i will lay down my heart
and i'll feel the power but you won't
no, you won't"
~I Can't Make You Love Me, as covered by Bon Iver

Also, YouTube, how did you know I would love this? Prediction technology is starting to weird me out a little, but, I'll get used to it.

2/22/11

O hey, blog, sorry I've been crazy-busy lately. This was in my YouTube recs today and though I was uncertain at first, it won me over in the first chorus.



I mean, you take my favorite Smashing Pumpkins song and throw in a couple of my new harmonic idols, and yeah, I'll listen to this seven times today. As I learn more "sacreligious" covers myself, I realize the importance of making it your own, especially when you're stripping something down the acoustic. The Civil Wars do that wonderfully, layering their trademark sound over the basic melody of what is a chilling, chilling song.

I didn't even miss the gong. Well, maybe a little.