Off to Korea

I'm off to Korea for a business trip. Regular posting will resume in 10 days or so.

Ivy: Thinking About You

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Wiki]
(Thanks Big Boots)

The Wannadies: Friends

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Myspace]
[Band Wiki]

Thoughts On:Mystery Jets--Twenty One

In rock, it's always the same old story. How do a bunch of guys with guitars make songs about girls sound fresh again? It's a task easier said than done, to be sure, and even when bands seem to stumble upon the right formula, it only lasts for an album or two. The latest band to get it right is the Mystery Jets, for in "Twenty One" they have created exactly half of a brilliant album.

For a band with such inauspicious beginnings, half of a brilliant record ain't (pardon the pun) half bad. The Mystery Jets' first UK album was "Making Dens", the bulk of which was repackaged for their first proper American record, "Zootime". Whichever album you consider as their debut, it's pretty slim pickings. Heavy on novelty factors like the guitarist's dad playing in the band and kitchen-sink arrangements, in the bulk of their early material the band come off as the bastard offspring of The Coral and Hot Hot Heat (no, that's not a compliment).

That being said, there were a few reasons to be optimistic about the band's future, such as a mastery of their own quirky sense of rhythm, and the use of exuberant harmonies more focused on capturing a feeling than on hitting all the right notes. Single "Diamonds in the Dark", which made its way onto both "Zootime" and "Making Dens", is absolutely great, with some eccentric lyrics about love gone bad and a tune that Elvis Costello might have crafted in his golden period.

Listen to "Diamonds in the Dark":

[Download the MP3 Here]

To be sure, on "Twenty One", the Mystery Jets have developed both as songwriters and musicians. The question is whether they're quite done evolving. Lead-off single "Young Love" has all the makings of a classic, an odd jangly little tune that's so simple even a child could sing it: 'One night of love, nothing more nothing less; one night of love left my bed in a mess. Is that you on the bus? Is that you on the train? You wrote your number on my hand and it came off in the rain.' Yes, guest singer Laura Marling's reformed Eliza Doolittle crooning seems a bit overdone, but that's a small complaint. Elsewhere, 80s homage "Two Doors Down" has a chorus that's pure Whitney Houston (pre-Bobby Brown) and a closing sax solo that Huey Lewis would trade his best beige blazer for.

"Flakes", given away as free download at the end of 2007, is "Earth Angel" on acid. It's a genuinely affecting ode to lost love and misspent youth. "Behind the Bunhouse" makes fine use of techniques perfected by The Smiths like arpeggiated guitar and that incessant shuffling beat. There's a distinct indie-disco vibe to "Half In Love with Elizabeth", the album's highlight:

I knew that you were thinking of him last night
'Cos I saw the blood seep down to your toes
Turn away if you must
But how can you put your trust
In a man who always sleeps in his clothes?

But as alluded to in previous paragraphs, the band aren't quite there yet when it comes to putting together a complete album. Opener "Hideaway" repeats all the mistakes of their first record, only with Erol Alkan's dancy production further muddying the waters. Mid-album cut "Hand Me Down" sounds tired, cliche and possibly unfinished."MJ" is an absolutely terrible remake of The Police's "Don't Stand So Close to Me"; it's a wonder that such a dreadful song could exist on the same album as the majestic "Flakes".

The best moments of "Twenty One" will almost surely stand among the best moments of 2008, but this reviewer is only half in love with the Mystery Jets. The less inspiring songs will be quickly consigned to the recycle bin. They almost made a classic album, but didn't quite get there in the end.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Correction 3/22: I've been informed in the comments section that "Half in Love with Elizabeth" was recorded by Stephen Street, not Erol Alkan. The relevant section has been updated. My apologies.

Listen to "Half in Love with Elizabeth":

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Myspace]
[Band Wiki]

Lou Reed, Nico, and John Cale: Live at Le Bataclan '72

With the enormous interest generated by the Velvet Underground bootleg I posted a few weeks ago, "Live at the Gymnasium 1967" (Link), I thought I would post another show. This one isn't quite as rare, but it's just as interesting. In it, Lou Reed, John Cale, and Nico have a semi-reunion and play VU songs alongside their own solo work. You could kind of say it's the VU "unplugged". Here's the tracklist:

1 I'm Waiting for the Man
2 Berlin
3 The Black Angel's Death Song (Reed, Cale)
4 Wild Child
5 Heroin
6 Ghost Story (Cale)
7 The Biggest, Loudest, Hairiest Group of All (Cale)
8 Empty Bottles (Cale)
9 Femme Fatale
10 No One Is There (Nico)
11 Frozen Warnings (Nico)
12 Janitor of Lunacy (Nico)
13 I'll Be Your Mirror
14 All Tomorrow's Parties (encore)

[Download the whole show]

Listen to "Heroin":

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Wiki]

Waiting for the Man:


Berlin:

Surrounded: Safe Tomorrow Sun

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Myspace]

Continental Divide: Golden Throats

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Myspace]
(Thanks Nathan)

Adorable Again

About a year ago, I interviewed Pete Fijalkowski, the lead singer of the early 90s band Adorable. Here's a small bit of it:

DF: In early interviews, you were painted as being incredibly arrogant. Was it an accurate depiction?

PF: It's hard for me to say. There's very few people who would admit to being arrogant. I was certainly very confident of what we were doing, and though I feel we were somewhat mis-labelled, the general perception is probably not without some merit. I remember when we came to the USA we were excited, because we felt it was a time when we could start anew. It had all gone wrong press-wise in the UK , and this was our chance to come somewhere with a fresh slate or so we thought- when we arrived we discovered to our horror that the label had decided to run a campaign dubbing us as "the band you love to hate". Cue heavy sighs as we spent half an hour each show tearing down posters with this slogan that had been painstakingly put up at each venue by SBK employees. Overall I'm quite glad from a personal point of view that Adorable imploded as it did, because I think I'm a far better person for it.

[Full Interview Link]

The interview got a decent amount of attention on the ol' internet, and I'd like to think that it introduced some new people to the band. Not long after the interview was posted, I got an email from Neal, who works for Cherry Red Records in the UK. He was asking if I could provide him with Pete's contact info. Neal, a longtime fan, had been trying for years to put together an Adorable compilation. I gave him the info, and long story short, the new compilation "Footnotes" is now available in stores.

Music fans should be thankful for Neal and his hard work, and to the band for putting out so many great songs in their short tenure. I'm happy that Dead Flowers could play a part, no matter how insignificant, in bringing this compilation together. That's always been the goal of the site--to expose people to great music that they might not otherwise hear.

Here's the tracklist:

1. Sunshine Smile
2. Glorious
3. Sistine Chapel Ceiling
4. Vendetta
5. A To Fade In
6. Submarine
7. Sunburnt
8. I'll Be Your Saint
9. Manina Suitcase
10. Homeboy
11. Summerside
12. Feed Me
13. Fallenidol
14. Crash Sight
15. Cut #2
16. Kangaroo Court
17. Lettergo
18. Breathless

Listen to "Sunshine Smile":

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Myspace]
[Band Wiki]

Bob Dylan: Just Like a Woman

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Wiki]

Live Acoustic:

Oasis: The Hindu Times

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Myspace]
[Band Wiki]

The Rolling Stones: I Just Want to Make Love to You

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Wiki]

The Audacity of Mope

An interesting post from Morrissey Solo about The Smiths and Morrissey's album sales in the US:

Here are the Morrissey and Smiths album sales in the Soundscan era (i.e from 1992 onwards), which I received from a friend who works there.

Interestingly enough both in 2007 and in total sales since 1992 The Smiths outsell Morrissey, if only just.

In 2007 The Smiths sold 66,063 albums in the US and Morrissey sold 58,992 albums
Cumulatively The Smiths have sold 2,598,266 albums in the SoundScan era and Morrissey has sold 2,350,983.

The best selling Smiths albums from 1992 onwards are:

Best...1 : 432,907
Louder Than Bombs: 412,444
Singles: 396,150
The Queen Is Dead: 287,180
Meat Is Murder: 245,385
Strangeways, Here We Come: 230,794
Best...2: 208,357
Harful of Hollow: 133,809
The Smiths: 130,076

The best selling Morrissey album from 1992 onwards are:

Your Arsenal: 366,047
Bona Drag: 360,977
Vauxhall & I: 293,017
Viva Hate: 234,804
You Are The Quarry: 230,169
Kill Uncle: 221,293
Best of Morrissey: 179,746
Ringleader of The Tormentors: 97,502
Maladjusted: 88,554
World Of Morrissey: 69,357
Southpaw Grammar: 67,451

Listen to "Half a Person":

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Wiki]
[Link from Excellent Online]

Godspeed You Black Emperor: East HastingsHuman Bell: Outposts of Oblivion

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Myspace]

Jeff Buckley: Dream Brother (Live at L' Olympia)

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Artist Website]
[Artist Wiki]

The Notwist: Good Lies

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Wiki]
(Thanks Kris)

Real Ones: Outlaw (Edited Version, Web Rip)

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Website]
[Band Myspace]
[Guardian Feature on the band]

Glasvegas: Daddy's Gone

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Myspace]
[Band Website]
[Alan McGee Blog Post about the band for The Guardian]

Promo:

Black Kids: I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Myspace]
[Band Wiki]

Screaming Tea Party: Death Egg

Listen:

[Download the MP3 Here]
[Band Myspace]
(Thanks Christian)

Ticketmaster Reveals its Inner Goth