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Archive for the ‘Funny (ha ha)’ Category

Jen Wang–Koko Be Good (2010).

Posted in Car Seat Headrest, Cory Doctorow, Drinking, First Second :01, Funny (ha ha), Graphic Novel, Jen Wang, Robert Pollard, Romance, Tiny Desk Concert, Travel on February 26, 2016| Leave a Comment »

kokoSOUNDTRACK: CAR SEAT HEADREST-Tiny Desk Concert #506 (February 8, 2016).

carseatI only know of Car Seat Headrest from NPR.  They have really liked some of his previous songs and both Bob and Robin raved about his new song “Vincent” (which is really good).

For this Tiny Desk Concert, Will Toledo (who is kind of the only guy in the band, although not currently if you know what I mean) plays acoustic guitar on a tall stool.  Accompanying him are two friends from Leesburg, Va, who don’t actually do anything, and his two band mates who also don’t do anything (well, the drummer plays a toy “desktop” drum set for the song “The Drum”).  And yes, they all sing along during the sing along at the end of song three.

It’s worth mentioning that Toledo has released some 12 albums under the name Car Seat Headrest since 2010 (and Toledo is only 23).  Find them at bandcamp.  Unlike someone like Robert Pollard who has written hundreds of songs that are about 30 seconds long.  Most of Toledo’s songs are really quite long, with multiple parts.  And amazingly, all the parts are pretty catchy,

He plays three songs in this set.  His voice is a little creaky and high-pitched, but it is really-spot on for the kind of songs he writes.  By contrast,. it’s funny to hear how deep his speaking voice is.

“The Drum” opens with a riff that is almost out of tune seeming (like his voice).  The melody lines in the verses are simple but often unexpected.  And lyrically, the song is quite interesting (“the drum reads James Joyce,” “the drum’s in debt”).  And just when it seems like the song could end, it switches to a slower middle section, after which it all comes back to that catchy chorus.  By the end of the song it’s totally grabbed you.

For “Drunk Drivers/Killer Whales,” he pushes his falsetto pretty high.  The  song starts out rather slow but once the verses start properly it picks up.  I love the way in the drunk drivers part he adds vocal melodies that are not in the music to make the song even fuller.   And then unexpectedly, the song shifts gears from the melancholy drunk driver section to the powerfully sung (and I’m not exactly sure how it’s related) “Killer Whales” part. It runs to 6 minutes and is constantly shifting and always stays interesting.

“Sober To Death” is also about 6 minutes long. There’s some great lyrics in here as well “every conversation ends with you screaming.  Not even words just ah ah ahhhhh” (with his voice breaking during the ahhs).   The sing along part at the end has a neat intro where the first guitar line is plucked slowly and the second line picks up speed.  And when everyone sings along it really elevates the song.

After just two listens to this show I was totally hooked and I’m really looking forward to hearing his last album, which is reworking of his earlier songs for Matador Records, and his soon to be released new album with “Vincent” on it.

[READ: February 25, 2016] Koko Be Good

I absolutely adored the art in this book.  I really thought it was outstanding and it has made me search out more of Wang’s stuff (she has a number of online comics at her website).  I also didn’t realize that she drew In Real Life–with Cory Doctorow–her style is similar there but a but less wild as it is here.  And the story is pretty great too.

So this is the story of two main protagonists and a third character who plays a smaller but pivotal role.  Koko is a wild Chinese girl who is carefree and careless.  Jon Wilgur is a tightly wound young man who is planning to change his life pretty drastically.

koko2The story opens with Jon–he is drawn so perfectly, I can’t get over it–a great combination of realism and cartoon style.  He is listening to an audiotape sent by his girlfriend (I love that he is listening to an audio cassette).  He and his girlfriend are planning to move to Peru together very soon. She is currently there and he is about to pack up and head down there himself. (more…)

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MK Reed, Jonathan Hill–Americus (2011)

Posted in #10yearsof01, Canadian Music, Constellation Records, First Second :01, Fly Pan Am, Free Speech, Funny (ha ha), Graphic Novel, Jonathan Hill, Le Fly Pan Am, LGBTQ, Library Related, M.K. Reed, Marriage Trouble, Military, Morality, Parenting, Religion, Set at School, YA Books on February 24, 2016| Leave a Comment »

americusSOUNDTRACK: FLY PAN AM-Sédatif en fréquences et sillons EP [CST011] (2000).

330px-SedatifsEnFrequencesCover This is an EP that works as a kind of remixes and deconstructs further the debut. There are three songs, the first is fourteen minutes, the second is 11 and the final is 4.  As the Constellation site describes the disc:

This 3-song EP of fractured, tape-infested experiments is an intransigent slab of self-referential auto-criticism. The band was sticking to its agenda of acutely self-conscious musical manipulations, re-working its own materials and assumptions to yield new compositions of uncompromising formalism. Side A is a medley of sorts, consisting of phrases and fragments reconfigured and replayed from their self-titled debut (Fly Pan Am). Various melodies are reassembled and played off of one another, creating an extended live remix with blissful passages of layered guitars, drones, sampled backing vocal lines, and the requisite incidental noise break in the middle of the piece. The result is something like a ‘Stars On 45’-style musical encapsulation of the entire debut record.

“De cercle en cercle, ressasser et se perdre dans l’illusion née de la production de distractions et multiplier la statique environnante!” (“From Circle to Circle, Rehash and Get Lost in the Illusion Born of Production and Increase the Static Distractions Surrounding!”) opens with the sounds of machinery rumbling and then slowing to a stop. The song proper opens with a rapid bass line and squalls of feedback.   Some beautiful guitars play over the noise. More guitars come in along with all kinds of crazy noises—scrapes and scratches, radios and distortion.

The propulsive music stops around 3 and half minutes in and the noise takes over. There’s loud noises and static and all kinds of things. Then the noise shifts to what sounds like someone emptying a bag of ball bearings onto a metal table.  And then maybe making microwave popcorn.  About five minutes later (seriously) a drum starts playing in the background and then a guitar line that references the debut album starts up.  It sounds a bit like the two note guitar from “Dans ses cheveux soixante circuits” with the voices from “Nice est en feu!” thrown on top.  And then at 11:20 that two note half-tone thing from “Dans ses cheveux soixante circuits” resumes, but it’s only for 20 or so seconds before different sounds come to take away the repetitiveness (although the guitars do continue that until the end of the song).  It seems like the band wanted to revisit their debut but also wanted to make sure that it was properly buried under chaos as well.

The second song “Éfférant/Afférant” (“Unrelated / Related”) (11 minutes long) is described as “somnambulist clockwork repetition.” The bass and drums are kinda funky with some simple guitar chords playing in the background. While things do change somewhat throughout song (including notes that seem inappropriate at times), the main source of change is the weird electronic sounds that play over the top. The noise starts to grow louder and louder around 9 minutes and just when it gets unbearable it fades out to the end of the song.

“Micro Sillons” (“LPs”) is only 4 minutes long and it opens with static and noises—different ones in each ear.  After about three minutes of that, the noise mutates into a kind of machine-like hum.

This is definitely a challenging listen.  There are rewards to be had, and it s amazing what good songwriters these guys are, if they’d ever let their songs stay unmolested.

[READ: December 17, 2015] Americus

I didn’t really have any idea what this book was about–the title Americus evokes many different things.

So imagine my surprise to find out that this First Second graphic novel [go First Second!, #10yearof01] tackles the idea of banning books in schools.  It looks at religion, freedom of speech and middle school.

The story is about Neil Barton, an unpopular kid who loves fantasy and books, especially the Apathea Ravenchilde series (such a great name). Neil and his friend Danny race to library after school because the latest volume is out.  Neil is bummed that his library could only afford one copy of the book (budget cuts!) and Danny gets it first.  And as he starts reading, the artistic style switches to the Ravenchilde world (I loved that).

Then we meet Neil’s and Danny’s families.  Neil’s parents are divorced.  He lives with his mom who is harried and exhausted.  Danny’s family is an intact nuclear family, with two younger siblings.  And we learn soon enough that his mother (and father to a degree) are very Christian. (more…)

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Lars Jansson–Moomin: Volume Seven (The Complete Tove Jansson Comic Strip) (2012)

Posted in Adventure, Animals, Boredom, Children's Books, Circus, Constellation Records, Cute, Drawn & Quarterly, Evening News London, Funny (ha ha), Lars Jansson, Magic, Moomin, Supernatural, Surreal, The Dead Science, Tove Jansson on February 19, 2016| Leave a Comment »

cst053webmoomin7SOUNDTRACK: THE DEAD SCIENCE-“Throne of Blood (The Jump Off) 7” single [CST053] (2008).

This was a tour only 7″ that Constellation picked up before releasing The Dead Science’s Villianaire album.  There are two songs, “Throne of Blood (The Jump Off),” which is the lead song from the Villainaire and “The Duel of Iron Mike” which is unavailable elsewhere.

“Throne of Blood (The Jump Off)” opens with some lovely harp playing before the eccentric vocal styles of The Dead Science take over.  Everything about this song is unexpected–the weird staccato guitars, the crazy falsetto, wavery vocals.  The song seems totally random until you hear all of the intention in it all where it all gels at the chorus. I love the part where the backing vocal comes in and sings “Villainiare Ice Grillianiare” (or whatever the heck it says).

“The Duel Of Iron Mike” (not to be confused with the Wu Tang Clan track which is what you’ll find if you look up the song n YouTube), opens with an interesting riff.  There’s that low bass and that falsetto vocal that you either love or hate.

The chorus is almost catchy–it’s a little too minor key to be catchy but it’s very intriguing because it’s not quite what you expect and after one or two listens, you can’t stop playing it.  The end section with the two layers of falsetto vocals is weird and very cool, too.  The Dead Science are a unique band.  I wish they’d put out more music.

[READ: February 12, 2015] Moomin Volume 7

Moomin Book 7 and every subsequent book is made entirely of strips written and drawn by Lars Jansson.  These stories originally ran in the Evening News, London 1960-1975.

These four stories continue with the themes that Tove wrote about.  And Lars’ drawings look very much like Tove’s as well.  I have noticed a few things that look different–sometimes he does the eyes differently, and certain angles don’t look quite right.  But otherwise, it’s a pretty seamless transition.  Oh I aslo noticed that in this book, he has begun signing his name much bigger in each strip.

The chapters are “Moomin the Colonist” “Moomin and the Scouts” “Moomin and the Farm” “Moomin and the Goldfields”

(more…)

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Greg Means, MK Reed, Joe Flood–The Cute Girl Network (2013)

Posted in Akron/Family, Constellation Records, Do Make Say Think, First Second :01, Funny (ha ha), Graphic Novel, Greg Means, Joe Flood, Lullabye Arkestra, M.K. Reed, Romance, Sex, Sexism, Skateboarding, YA Books on February 18, 2016| Leave a Comment »

cute girlSOUNDTRACK: DO MAKE SAY THINK-Other Truths [CST062] (2009).

DMST-OtherTruthsCST062Other Truths is (so far) Do Make Say Think’s final album (they have been on hiatus since).  I’ve mentioned this album before, but here it has context with the others.

There are only four songs on this disc and it really feels like a culmination of what they have been exploring with their more recent output.  There is still experimentation (the shortest song is 8 minutes after all), but there aren’t the really strange sections like on the previous album (no weird drop outs or deconstructions).  And, in fact, they have embraced more of the catchiness that the last album hinted at.  The first song, “Do” (each song is named after one of the words in the band’s name) is one of the catchiest things they’ve done.  It’s easily my favorite song from them

I love the guitar lick that runs through “Do” a series of two note patterns that are surprisingly catchy.  The drums are wild throughout as the rest of the song chugs along nicely.  It’s 10 minute long though, and the whole thing is not that pattern.  About 2 minutes in the bass takes over, playing a similarly interesting riff before some dissonant guitars ring out and the band resumes with a new section of the song.  Some voices (from Akron/Family and Lullabye Arkestra) enter the song singing gentle ah’s as the song progresses.  The introductory riff resumes with some great additions.  Then the horns blow over the top–making the song soar higher and higher while the rest of the band plays in the background.  Around 7:30 the music all drops away except for some washes of keyboards.  The song continues like that with some quieter washes until the end.

“Make” is a 12 minute song which has tribal drums and simple guitar lines to start with.  The singing comes in around 2:30.  There’s some great moments in this song where the guitars play simple riffs that grow and build and then the horns come in again.  It’s a wonderful song with moments where the whole sounds of the song sounds so big and jubilant yet slightly menacing at the same time.  By about 9 minutes tape manipulation glitches it to a halt with the drums getting slower and slower and deeper and the guitars expanding out as slow as can be.  The last two minutes resurrect some ringing guitars and horns which grow and grow seem to be playing an elegiac coda for this song, It’s really beautiful, and it’s recorded so well it’s like you can hear the air being blown into them).

“Say” is also 12 minutes long.  It opens with what sounds like foghorns, or tubas getting distorted almost by a Doppler effect.  Then comes the rim shot drums and interesting effects sprinkled over the top.  At about 2 minutes another great, simple guitar riff comes in–DMST  has a way with making the simplest riffs sound great.  The whole band kicks in and plays along with the riff.   The song builds and ebbs, with the horns making the song feel huge.  For a brief middle section the song get quiet with a fast-picked guitar section and strings.  The end of this song (the last 2 minutes) also has a coda with horns but this one is mournful and quiet.  The chorus joins in again.  First with ohs and then with words.

“Think” ends the disc at a scant 8 minutes. It’s the quietest and most mellow song on the disc opening with jazzy drums and simple chords.  The slow guitar riff is lovely and there are dark voices humming along behind them.  Then you hear people talking in the distance, (I can’t make anything out) while a series of bass notes move the song forward.  By 4 and a half minutes a new guitar line comes in and the song gets a little bigger but it’s still slow.  The song never builds like the others; it stays quiet and slow, regretful and thoughtful, until it rings to a close.

This is a wonderful album full of all the great sounds of post-rock.

[READ: January 20, 2016] The Cute Girl Network

Imagine if you were a girl who moved to a new town and learned that there was a network of girls, cute girls, who kept tabs on all of the boys in town.  And the network was in place to keep you informed of what a doofus jackass your new boyfriend was.

It’s not a bad idea.  In fact a lot of good could come from it.  But sometimes informed choices have to have some personal experience as well.

And that’s where Jane and Jack come in.

Jane is new to Brookdale  Jane is pretty bad ass–she rides a skateboard and does amazing tricks.  She also works in a skate shop  She meets Jack when she wipes out in front of his soup kiosk.  He helps her out with a bottle of iced tea for her ailing coccyx and then just hopes that he’ll see her again.

Jack lives with Gil and Ruth.  Gil is a lunkhead who has been on a lot of first dates but few second ones.  Ruth hasn’t been on too many dates herself.  They both know that Jack is lazy (his previous wrote a song about him called “Layabout”) and a little dopey but he’s nice and kind-hearted and that’s what matters. (more…)

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Lars Jansson–Moomin: Volume Six (The Complete Tove Jansson Comic Strip) (2011)

Posted in Adventure, Animals, Boredom, Children's Books, Circus, Constellation Records, Cute, Do Make Say Think, Drawn & Quarterly, Evening News London, Funny (ha ha), Lars Jansson, Magic, Moomin, Supernatural, Surreal, Tiny Desk Concert, Tove Jansson on February 12, 2016| Leave a Comment »

6SOUNDTRACK: DO MAKE SAY THINK-Goodbye Enemy Airship the Landlord Is Dead [CST010] (2000).

330px-DmstgoodbyeenemyAfter their debut album, Do Make Say Think made this second album which sonically fits together perfectly and really explores instrumental post-rock.  Most of the songs were recorded in a barn giving it a very big sound (complete with insects chirping).  While there were horns in the debut, they seem to be punched up a bit more on this record, and they really seem to help the record rock more.

“When Day Chokes the Night” song is 6 minutes long and I love the way the opening is a simple guitar melody slowly picked and strummed for 3 or so minutes. Then at 3:30 there’s a noisy “drum solo” that sets you up for the second half of the song which introduces wailing saxophone and it all really rocks out.

“Minmin” is 8 minutes long.  It opens slower but adds a steadily propulsive bass and drum pattern. Around 5 minutes the drums become martial and a new rhythm and bass pattern enters as the song gets bigger.  The riff is a solid rock riff and there’s some interesting feedback behind it.  It’s some of a classic construct of a slow building song that shifts gears midway through.

“The Landlord is Dead” (at a brief 5 and a half minutes). opens with a similar echoing riff, this one is more catchy than the others. Some horns fill out the background.  The song builds properly to a screaming guitar soloing wild ending.  It’s easily my favorite song on the record.

“The Apartment Song” is slower, with echoing guitars and a more trippy feel.  I love the way the really noisy guitars blast out for 8 notes and then recede again.  It’s the first of two songs under four minutes

“All of This is True” starts out with a noisy drum beat, open chords and a distant horn.   This song slowly builds for about two minutes before pausing entirely and then resuming as something else—more slow horns layering on each other the horns drift away and guitars take over again.  There’s something of a dancey beat on the drums all along.  The song ends with crowd noises and someone shouting “Merry Christmas Everybody” before seguing into “Bruce E Kinesis.”  “Kinesis” opens with a heavy bass line and insistent drum beat before the interesting guitar counterpoint plays over the riff.  For the first time, really, a keyboard riff takes over  It feels slightly sinister.  This song has a kind of claustrophobic feel, but with a kind of funky drum all the way through.  At only 3:40 this song feels compact and efficient, and as something of a lead in to the 12 minute album closer “Goodbye Enemy Airship”

The final takes a while to get where it’s going.  After some introductory drumming there’s plenty of one-note guitar and horns which keep growing louder and more insistent for the first 4 minutes.  It turns into a very bright guitar melody–bouncy and fun.  (This is one of the two songs not recorded in the barn).  It develops a distinctly jazzy feel.   The song gets bigger with some great bass chords alongside the repeating riff on the guitar.  At around 9 minutes the song morphs into the third part of this exploration of similar riffs and textures. This one is a bit trippier. The disc ends with some mildly dissonant keyboard notes as the guitar echoes to halt.

While I do enjoy their debut, this album feel like a giant stride forward in terms of composition and cohesion.

[READ: February 3, 2015] Moomin Volume 6

Moomin Book 6 is composed entirely of strips written and drawn by Lars Jansson.  Lars was 12 years younger than Tove.  He was a writer, translator and gold-miner (!).  He wrote his first novel at fifteen and then proceeded to write 8 more.  Lars translated the earlier strips into English as Tove wrote them in Swedish.  Tove’s contract was to expire in 1959, so he began teaching himself how to draw Moomins (Tove didn’t know).  Tove’s creative fatigue set in and so Lars wrote his first comic in 1956 and by 1960, he was ready to take over.  The newspaper syndicate approved the switch and so these final strips all belong to him.  He created Moomin for fifteen years–twice as long as Tove worked on it.  These stories originally ran in the Evening News, London 1960-1975.

I love that they must have agreed that each strip would open with a big Moomin behind as well.

The chapters are “Moomin’s Lamp” “Moomin and the Railway and “Moominpappa and the Spies” “Moomin and the Circus”

(more…)

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Emmanuel Guibert–Alan’s War: The Memories of G.I. Alan Cope (2000, 2002, 2008) [translation 2008]

Posted in Alan Cope, Do Make Say Think, Emmanuel Guibert, First Second :01, Funny (ha ha), Graphic Novel, Henry Miller, History, Kathryn Pulver, Octavio Paz, Religion, War, World War II on February 10, 2016| Leave a Comment »

alansSOUNDTRACK: DO MAKE SAY THINK-Do Make Say Think [CST005] (1999).

cst005web This album was self-released in 1997, but then the guys at Constellation took it and released it in a beautiful package in 1999.  And Constellation did it right: CD gatefold jacket made from 100lb. textured uncoated cardstock with foil-embossed text and window cut.  Three different two-sided duotone insert cards can be interchanged to show through the front cover window cut. Snazzy!

So this album was recorded in two different locations and it feels a bit more like  compilation of their songs than an album proper.  This doesn’t detract from the music at all, it’s just not as cohesive as their later releases.

“1978” has a raw sound.  It builds slowly, with waves of sorta static getting slowly louder for the first minute. And then the drums kick in. They sound very “live” and crisp. There’s a jazzy pattern accompanied by an unusual bass line.  At 3 minutes a big guitar riff breaks up the droning feeling as it rocks out and then disappears just as quickly.  There’s some saxophone and trippy headphone panning going on, too. This sets in motion a more funky bass line that runs like a lead instrument through the proceedings. There’s some noise bashing around at 8 minutes and a even wah wahed guitar solo at 9.  These occasional disruptions give an interesting melodic sense to this otherwise droney (in a good way) 10-minute song.

“Le’espalace”  feels a little warmer.  It opens with some analog synth trippy sounds and a pretty guitar riff. This is a lovely song that meanders around. The song gets more dense with a synth taking over the guitar line and another synth playing a contrasting melody, too.

“If I Only…”  is 7 minutes long.  It also has a rawer feel.  It’s more staccato with keyboard notes propelling the song forward. There’s a trippy middle section with a nice drum breakdown. It stops at about 5 & a half minutes and resumes with a fuller sound as it rides to the end.  “Highway 420” continues with that more raw sound.  It opens with washes of synths like Tangerine Dream or something.  There’s also a slick guitar line that begins about 3 minutes in.  It’s all rather atmospheric.

Do Make Say Think have always had a bit of jazz at their roots.  That’s evident in “Dr. Hooch” which has jazzy cymbals and slow atmospheric guitars.  About half way through, a wild synth riff comes in and takes over the song for a minute or so before returning to the atmospheric sound.

“Disco & Haze” is a warmer song that slowly builds with a spacey keyboard section.  Around 3 minutes in (of 9) a wah-wah’d guitar takes over—seemingly unrelated.   At 5 and a half minutes the song crashes into a big noisy “chorus,” probably the loudest thing on the record. There’s a noisy skronking sax solo to accompany this as well and it ends with washes of keyboards.   It really sounds like nothing else on the record.

“Onions” is only 90 seconds long.   It’s a simple keyboard riff with echo and little variation.  It’s an odd inclusion but maybe serves as a palette cleanser before the nearly 20 minute final song.  “The Fare to Get There” is warm with spacey keyboard washes and occasional woodwinds–there’s even flute at the end.  It’s 20 minutes long so just sit back and let it unfold over you.  Around 5 minutes in, eerie and spooky drums begin.  Then there’s some reverbed guitar chords and echoed notes which keep the song going.  About three-quarters of the way through, they add a simple guitar riff that continues for several minutes. With a couple of minutes left the song introduces some flutes as it mellows it way to close.

This is a pretty impressive debut.  The band knows the sound they are going for and they definitely achieve it.  Later records are more consistent (and consistently better), but this (especially the opening track) is a great place to start with this band.

[READ: February 7, 2016] Alan’s War

One of the things that First Second hoped for in their ten-year anniversary was that people might read books that they wouldn’t normally.  And boy was this ever one.  The title didn’t sound very appealing to me–I don’t really like war stories all that much.  And frankly I didn’t even know what to expect from the story, really.  Certainly not what I got!

This is the story of a man named Alan Cope.  And the origin of the story is as fascinating as the story itself (almost).  Turns out that Emmanuel Guibert met Alan Cope in the street in France.  Guibert asked the older for directions in June of 1994. Cope was 69, Gilbert was 30. They struck up a conversation.  And soon after, Cope began telling of his experiences in World War II.  What happened to him during and after the war and why this American solider now living in France.

Guibert asked if he could draw the stories that Cope was telling him and Cope said yes.  So this is a story of World War II but it is unlike any story I have ever read.  There is very little in the way of “familiar” WWII stuff in it.  Cope wasn’t in any of the major battles, he never came under heavy fire.  Rather, Cope had a fairly easy war, but he had a ton of stories that were interesting, funny, sometime unbelievable. And the number of famous people he encountered is pretty surprising.

I enjoyed this story so much.  On a side note, My father was in WWII and he also had a fairly easy war, although he was in the Pacific, he was on a small island that saw no action..  I wouldn’t say he enjoyed the war, but he came out with good experience and good friends, which is what Cope did, too.  My fathers stories were far less amazing than Cope’s, but it goes to show that everyone has interesting stories and that no amount of film or history channel commemoration will ever cover everyone’s story. (more…)

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Dave Roman–Astronaut Academy: Re-Entry (2013)

Posted in #10yearsof01, Adventure, Dave Roman, Dave Roman, First Second :01, Funny (ha ha), Graphic Novel, Humiliation, Set at School, Supernatural, The Black Angels, Tiny Desk Concert, Unfinished series on February 7, 2016| Leave a Comment »

aareentry SOUNDTRACK: THE BLACK ANGELS-Tiny Desk Concert #132 (June 8, 2011).

I hblakangelsave The Black Angels’ 2013 album Indigo Meadow and I like it a lot.  It has a cool retro psychedelic vibe while still retaining a heaviness that sounds great.

For this Tiny Desk Concert, which is more or less in support of their 2010 album Phosphene Dream, the band strips down to almost a folk band.

There is an acoustic guitar, and hollow-bodied electric which I think is not plugged in (one guitar plays the bass lines and other one plays the solo notes), there’s a harmonium (the second one in a few weeks on the Tiny Desk), there’s a drummer (with basically a floor tom) and the lead singer with a tambourine.

No one is amplified except the singer–whose voice is processed to sound extra trippy (note especially the first lines of the second song, where he sounds like he’s singing from outer space).  His singing is very gentle (especially since they are basically unplugged, which makes the effects seem even more powerful).

The band plays four songs, “Bad Vibrations” which is a great way to start off.  “Haunting At 1300 McKinley” showcases that echoing voice very well.  One of the guitarist sings nice harmony vocals as well.  The harmonium has that vibrato sound that also makes the song seem trippy.

“Entrance Song” has the other guitarist singing harmony (deeper voice compared to the singer’s rather high voice).

For the final song, “Too Much Hate,” the singer plays the guitar (leaving the former guitar player with nothing to do).  The sentiment of the song is excellent, really showing off a hippy vibe.

I really like The Black Angels a lot, and this makes me think I need to check out their earlier stuff too.

[READ: February 3, 2016] Astronaut Academy: Re-Entry

I enjoyed Book 1 a lot but I enjoyed this sequel so much more.  I’m glad that I put off reading this one until after the first because even though there were no mysterious things that I wouldn’t have gotten, the whole experience is definitely greater if you read these in order.

This book opens with a similar style–brief episodes about each person–and what they have been up to over the summer.  I enjoyed that Hakata Soy has been spending his time on earth (such a novel idea).  But that’s when he gets the devastating news that Princess Boots, the girl he gave his second heart to in the backstory, actually gave it away and is now dating his arch-nemesis Rick Raven.

Scab Wellington was released from prison (which makes Maribelle Mellonbelly happy).  And Thalia Thistle still hasn’t told her dad that she plays Fireball. (more…)

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Dave Roman–Astronaut Academy: Zero Gravity (2011)

Posted in #10yearsof01, Dave Roman, First Second :01, Funny (ha ha), Future Islands, Graphic Novel, Jack Black, Outer Space, Raina Telgemeier, Set at School, Supernatural, Tiny Desk Concert, Unfinished series, Video Games on February 6, 2016| Leave a Comment »

aazero SOUNDTRACK: FUTURE ISLANDS-Tiny Desk Concert #128 (May 16, 2011).

futureI don’t really know that much about Future Islands.  I know they were huge in 2014, but this Tiny Desk comes from three years earlier, when perhaps they were less known?

I didn’t really like the single that was very popular in 2014, but I can’t recall how it compares to this show. The band consists of a bassist and a keyboardist/electronic drummer and Sam Herring the lyricist/vocalist/melodramatic front man.

It’s odd seeing him sitting casually on the edge of the desk before he starts singing.  He seems so mellow and then he sings with a crazily arch voice and unexpected dramatic flourishes.

Given his general appearance and some of the faces he was making I kept thinking that Jack Black would do an aces impersonation of him.

The songs are simple musically–simple keyboard lines and, it must be said, some solid bass holding things down.  All the drama comes from the lyrics, like in “On the Water”: “Body of mine, body of Christ, can I be the one who saves your life.”

It’s funny to hear him talk between songs so deadpan and unaffected, before resuming that unusual singing style.

“The Ink Well” has some weird echoing keyboards sounds before the solid bass comes in again.  I have a hard time taking his vocals seriously, it seems so over the top.  Although the blurb says that “What Future Islands is really going for, with the mordant wit in the lyrics, the melodramatic chord progressions and Herring’s yowling, scratchy voice [I wouldn’t describe it like that, actually], is catharsis. And catharsis can happen in your head and in your heart.”    And I do like the line “the ghost of you still haunts me at night and that’s enough to keep me happy, sometimes.”

He says that the second song is hard to song quiet.  Perhaps his singing style would work better if the music was bigger, fuller (matching the size of the amp they brought with them).

“Walking Through That Door” works best of the three songs.  It is a little faster, with a more propulsive bass and it feels louder, so that Herring’s voice seems to work better. And when he wails his lines at the end it seems appropriate.

Still not sure if I’m a fan, but I appreciate them a little more than I did.

[READ: February 1, 2016] Astronaut Academy: Zero Gravity

Both of the libraries that I go to had copies of the second book in this series, and I waited and waited for the first book to be returned, but it just appears that neither one ever arrived.  So I finally put in a request for book one (I couldn’t read the second first even if this is from First Second).  #10yearsof01

I really didn’t know what this story was about, but I was surprised to discover that it was a series of small incidents (each with an End). Was this a series of single web comics, or is it just a fun way to tell a bigger story?  I’ll never know.  The whole story is set at the astronaut academy.

As the book opens we see a promotional guide to Astronaut Academy from the principal (who carries a big sword and has big spiky hair).  We learn what the school has to offer and we see some of the teachers like Mr Namaguci who has even bigger hair than the principal and “may or may not have magical powers but is still handsome.”  There also Señor Panda (still not extinct) who has a secret.

We also see that the application is for Hakata Soy. (more…)

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Lars Jansson–Moomin: Volume Five (The Complete Tove Jansson Comic Strip) (2010)

Posted in Adventure, Animals, Bon Iver, Boredom, Children's Books, Cute, Drawn & Quarterly, Evening News London, Funny (ha ha), James Vincent McMorrow, Lars Jansson, Moomin, Religion, Surreal, Tiny Desk Concert, Tove Jansson on February 5, 2016| Leave a Comment »

moomin5  SOUNDTRACK: JAMES VINCENT McMORROW-Tiny Desk Concert #151 (August 25, 2011).

mcmorrowI don’t know McMorrow. He is an Irish singer who plays acoustic guitar.  His singing voice switches between a kind of raspy voice and a keening falsetto.

He plays four songs and his style and voice reminds me a lot of Bon Iver.

I don’t find any of his song especially compelling. They’re all nice–the humming part of “This Old Dark Machine” is pretty memorable.  As the part in the middle where he seems to get pretty intense.

“Sparrow And The Wolf” has some nice chord changes.  I think my favorite song is “Follow You Down To The Red Oak Tree,” which opens a little differently.

I have to say it’s a little awkward watching him up close as he does some pretty unusual things with his face when he sings.

The final song, “Red Dust” really shows off his falsetto.  I found his songs to be entirely pleasant and think they would sound great in a coffeeshop on a Sunday afternoon.

[READ: February 3, 2015] Moomin Volume 5

Moomin Book 5 is composed entirely of strips written by Lars and drawn by Tove.  These are the final strips that she contributed to.  And, as such, there are only three chapters in the book.  As with the others these stories originally ran in the Evening News, London 1953-1959.

The chapters are called “Moomin Winter” “Moomin Under Sail” and “Fuddler’s Courtship”

(more…)

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Tove Jansson–Moomin: Volume Four (The Complete Tove Jansson Comic Strip) (2009)

Posted in Adventure, Animals, Boredom, Children's Books, Cute, Drawn & Quarterly, Evening News London, Funny (ha ha), Lars Jansson, Moomin, Religion, Surreal, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Tiny Desk Concert, Tove Jansson on January 29, 2016| Leave a Comment »

moomin3  SOUNDTRACK: THE BLIND BOYS OF ALABAMA-Tiny Desk Concert #139 (July 5, 2011).

bboaI have of course heard of The Blind Boys of Alabama, but they only came on my radar maybe a decade or two ago.  And I never knew these things about them:

  • They formed under a different name in 1939.
  • The band has understandably experienced many lineup changes in the 72 years since.
  • Singer Jimmy Carter is the only participant in this lineup billed as a founding member, and even that term is up for debate.
  • They have released 60-plus albums and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
  • And that wherein these Blind Boys are young and old, blind and sighted.

There are six players for this Tiny Desk–a guitarist, a bassist and a barely visible drummer as well as three singers.

It makes me laugh that the guy on the far left sings much less than the others and seems to be less happy about being there.

They play four songs and, no surprise, they sound fantastic.  Their harmonies are outstanding and the music is quiet and subtle–a mellow accompaniment for this soulful music.

But their rendition of “Amazing Grace” is indeed amazing–they do it to the tune of “House of the Rising Sun” and it must be heard to be believed.  I happen to really like the original of “Amazing Grace” and I hate when it is done poorly.  But I love this interpretation–it’s original and still moving.

  • “Take The High Road”
  • “I Know A Place”
  • “Jesus Built A Bridge To Heaven”
  • “Amazing Grace”

[READ: January 23, 2015] Moomin Volume 4

Moomin Book 4 changes things pretty dramatically.  Because starting with this book, the stories were written by Tove’s brother Lars!

The colophon explains “[Chapters 14-17 were written by Lars [Jansson] and drawn by Tove.  Chapter 18 was to be run before Chapter 14 and be Tove’s farewell strip but she stayed on to draw 7 more chapters].”

So that means that the first four chapters in this book were written by Tove’s brother but she drew the art.  How fascinating.

This book contains the stories: “Moomin Goes Wild West,” “Snorkmaiden Goes Rococo,” “The Conscientious Moomins,” “Moomin and the Comet,” and “Moomin and the Golden Tail.”  As with the others these stories originally ran in the Evening News, London 1953-1959. (more…)

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