One red thread through the middle of a song

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Blind Pilot, mp3, Music

Can’t get enough of this one from Portland’s Blind Pilot. Tempo changes, building drums and a jolly infectious beat. Don’t like it? You’ve got issues, my friend.

One Red Thread – Blind Pilot

Blind Pilot’s latest release is called 3 Rounds And A Sound and I was going to tell you about their current tour dates but they don’t appear to have any right now, so you’ll have to make do with the studio experience instead.

Bonus mp3:

Two Towns from Me – Blind Pilot

Tuesday tunes

Tags

Eels, Kisses, mp3, Music, The Boy Least Likely To, The Old Believers

Cobbling together a few posts today I am, in preparation for a few days AWOL from the blog. Not to worry though, I’ve set some up to pop up periodically during my absence so those of you who simply can’t live without It All Started won’t be left totally bereft. Hi Mum. (Actually, my mum doesn’t read the blog – I don’t talk about Elvis and Dolly Parton enough. Love you Mum!)

Here are some tracks that have been languishing in my uploads folder, waiting patiently to be aired. My pick – the Old Believers tune. Top stuff. Although I love that Eels track too.

Granny’s Song – The Old Believers | myspace

Love Of The Loveless – Eels | myspace

Stringing Up Conkers – The Boy Least Likely To | myspace

Bermuda – Kisses | myspace

(Headphone image via this flickr stream)

And isn’t that a boring post title? Inspiration failed me today I’m afraid.

British Sea Power at The Corner

Tags

British Sea Power, gigs, mp3, Music, Seagull

(British Sea Power’s Yan – image courtesy of my sister, the lovely Elspeth)

I am so so late with this gig review that I’m afraid it might have to be done in dot points, with the aid of scattered notes that I wrote to myself on my phone throughout the show. It’s a bit grim really, isn’t it? I love British Sea Power. I loved this gig. Why I have not written about it til now? Who would know.

Here’s what I remember:

• ‘True Adventures’ had a solo viola start which was all kinds of beautiful
• My all time favourite BSP song ‘Great Skua’ was accompanied by a film featuring various kinds of bird life, but I couldn’t see any of it as I was standing directly below it. It was still awesome.
• ‘Waving Flags’ and ‘No Lucifer’ were brilliant
• Martin Noble recited a limerick in which he rhymed ‘bogan’ with ‘Paul Hogan’ and also included the word ‘cock’ in there somewhere
• Noble also did a trick which involved him ‘drinking’ water through his ear and then spitting it into the crowd
• He also crowd surfed, climbed a big pillar and hung from it upside down, and sat on an audience member’s shoulders while allowing him to play his guitar.

So yes, the whole show was brilliant and highly entertaining, and I’m sorry I can’t go into more detail. I’m a terrible blogger.

A couple of other thoughts:

• I don’t know how our corner became the pogo/irish bloody jig dancing corner. If you want to dance like an idiot and take up the same amount of space that ten normal gig-going people would generally occupy, DO IT UP THE BACK DAMMIT! (that’s a direct quote from my brief phone notes)
• Opening band Seagull were really quite awful. I don’t like to be too negative here at It All Started, but I’d hate for you to see them on a lineup somewhere and go out of your way to check them out. There are three of them – a bass player who holds his bass too high, a fairly inoffensive accordian player and a lead ‘singer’ (I use this term loosely) who I believe was suffering from sadly misdirected delusions of grandeur. He also insisted on pronouncing ‘Seagull’ as ‘Seeeeeeeeeeeaa-gull’. It was probably the most in tune he sounded all night.

The Great Skua – British Sea Power

British Sea Power have tour dates booked in the UK during April and May, ahead of the release of an as yet unnamed album due out later this year – check their website for details.

A few folky finds

Tags

folk, Hezekiah Jones, mp3, Music, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Wheel, Oweihops, The Gertrudes

(image via The Gertrudes’ myspace – photo credit Jeff Barbeau)

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I posted the gorgeous ‘Sailor’, by Canada’s The Gertrudes teaming up with PS I Love You? Go ahead and download it now, I’ll wait.

It’s great, right? Well I’ve tracked down a few more tracks by The Gertrudes (they’re a 12-piece, would you believe) and I’m particularly taken by ‘Turn Out The Lights (The River Song)’. Lovely haunting harmonies, plenty of banjo – subtle banjo, not over-the-top Deliverance banjo – and some well placed trumpet action. After a few listens this morning I also detected some squeezebox in the background (that’s what they call it on their myspace). Please listen. It will do you good.

The Gertrudes – Turn out the Lights (The River Song)

(Oweihops frontman Michael Metivier, image from Yer Bird Records)

Oweihops is an American 3-piece folk outfit that I came across while checking out Yer Bird Records, a label now run by my friend Sandy, who is also responsible for one of my favourite blogs, Slowcoustic. I’ve been completely charmed by ‘Sad Little Drunks’, which is all melancholy and wistful, has pedal steel (pedal steel!) and was featured on a Yer Birds compilation called Folk Music For The End Of The World, available to purchase for a mere $10. Other artists featured include J. Tillman, O’Death, Matthew Ryan and Hezekiah Jones. The Oweihops myspace also alludes to a fourth album to be released sometime this year.

Sad Little Drunks – Oweihops

Bonus mp3 (this one’s all about the cello)

Proximity – Oweihops

(image via the band’s myspace)

Hey, speaking of Philadelphia’s Hezekiah Jones (hello, segue!), they’re also on the Yer Birds label and are a band lead by Raphael Cutrufello, who writes their songs and plays about a billion instruments, and is accompanied in the studio and on the road by a ton of other people who also play about a billion instruments. Seriously, check out the list on their myspace. Nobody gets left behind! Nobody gets left behind! (Say this in the manner of Steve Carell in Little Miss Sunshine, when they’re all running to get into the van after pushstarting it. It will only enhance your reading experience).

Hezekiah Jones have just released the 4 track EP Bread Of Teeth which I’ve had the pleasure of listening to this morning. Opening track ‘Iowa Alligator’ is the more traditional folk-type song I think, quite twangy and upbeat, whereas the remaining three songs are a lot more reflective and downtempo (is that a word? Spell check says no, but I say yes). ‘I Love My Family’ is short but sweet, ‘Traffic To The Sea’ is quite lovely and closing track ‘Sorry Waltz’ features keys this time and some gorgeous vocal harmonies. It really is a lovely EP. HJ have a sprinkling of dates planned over the next couple of months – visit their myspace for details.

Now, ‘Traffic To The Sea’ is the official promo track, but ‘Iowa Alligator’ is my favourite, so Sandy has kindly allowed me to stream it here for your listening pleasure, but I’m afraid you’ll have to go buy it if you want if for your very own. Enjoy.

Iowa Alligator – Hezekiah Jones

Traffic to the Sea – Hezekiah Jones

(image via NR’s website)

Last but not least, I’ve written about Nathaniel Rateliff and The Wheel before and I was alerted to news of his debut album, due for release on April 27 called In Memory Of Loss, courtesy of I Am Fuel, You Are Friends. Demo track ‘Early Spring Till’ perfectly demonstrates the yearning vocals that first drew me to him back in July last year. You can also download the album version of this track by subscribing to Nathaniel’s mailing list on his website.

Nathaniel Rateliff & The Wheel embark upon a couple of tours next week, one of which has them supporting The Low Anthem (!), and there are also dates booked with Ra Ra Riot & Delta Spirit, as well as Tallest Man On Earth. Why do I not live in the northern hemisphere, I hear you say? It is a mystery to us both.

Early Spring Till (demo version) – Nathaniel Rateliff & The Wheel

Ohhh so that’s what all the fuss is about

Tags

mp3, Music, OK Go, video

Heard everyone raving about this video weeks ago but only caught it for the first time last night on Rage when I should’ve been in bed. It’s pretty bloody marvellous really, isn’t it?

This Too Shall Pass – OK Go

OK Go are no strangers to the clever music video either – remember the treadmill one? Even my mum knows that one.

(I did try to post that video here, but embedding was disabled. Doesn’t that give you the irrits?)

Coverage of note

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Coverage, Dirty Projectors, Jonsi, mp3, Music

Two covers have been doing the blog rounds this week. One of them I was fortunate enough to hear live on Monday morning. Triple J have been doing Like A Version for years now, inviting touring bands into the studio to perform both their own songs, as well as a cover version that’s often far removed from the music that the band usually plays (like The Wiggles covering AC/DC’s ‘It’s A Long Way To The Top’). Every year they release a CD featuring the best ones (which is where that Regina/John Lennon cover came from that I posted earlier this month).

Dirty Projectors were in the studio earlier this month and did a simply gorgeous version of Bob Dylan’s ‘Dark Eyes’. I love the harmonies and the simple instrumentation. Lovely stuff.

Dark Eyes (Bob Dylan Cover) – Dirty Projectors

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of all things Sigur Ros, so when I got wind of lead singer (and now solo artist) Jonsi covering MGMT’s ‘Time To Pretend’, I had to have a listen. I love the way he’s adapted the words, leaving some out and giving certain lines either a whole new meaning, or an added poignancy. And yeah, I feel like a bit of a dick using the word ‘poignancy’, but listen to the line ‘yeah it’s overwhelming what can we do? get jobs, wake up, commute’. I dunno, it works for me.

Time To Pretend (MGMT Cover) – Jonsi

Dirty Projectors are on the road at the moment, with Jonsi set to embark on a US/European tour in April – check their websites for dates. You can also join the Dirty Projectors mailing list in order to receive a free digital download.

(Dirty Projectors image from here, Jonsi image from here)

Melbourne Comedy Festival: who I’d go see

Tags

Adam Hills, Akmal Seleh, Kransky Sisters, Melbourne Comedy Festival, Nina Conti

I’d not heard of Nina Conti until I saw her on the Comedy Festival Gala earlier this week. Jolly clever, she is.

Akmal Selah is always good for a laugh.

As is Adam Hills – this bit about language is hilarious.

And I can never go past the twisted Kransky Sisters, from Esk in Queensland (Esk in Queensland)…

The Sound Of Silence (Simon & Garfunkel Cover) – The Kransky Sisters

Eagleowl

Tags

Eagleowl, mp3, Music

Eagleowl describing themselves: We are a lo-fi post folk ensemble from Edinburgh, Scotland. We try and make the best music we can. Nothing more, nothing less. I like it.

Eagleowl recently recorded a live session (music and video) with Matthew over at Song By Toad and it’s simply lovely. I’m particularly taken by ‘Blanket’. It’s a bit of a slow burner, but the way the strings build, fade and then break in again is beautiful.

Blanket (Toad Session) – Eagleowl

Eagleowl recently released a single, Sleep The Winter, which you can check out on their myspace. ‘Laughter’ is the b-side on the single, which you can listen to below, but I’ve not made it available for download because they’re only asking ₤1 for the digital version or ₤3.50 for the limited edition hand wrapped 7″ vinyl – visit their bandcamp page to purchase. Make sure you check out the rest of the live session as well – it’s definitely worth a look.

Laughter – Eagleowl

(Image from here)

Basia Bulat

Tags

Basia Bulat, mp3, Music, video

I’ve been listening to this Basia Bulat track over and over for about a week now. I just love it.

In The Night – Basia Bulat

Basia Bulat is a Canadian singer-songwriter and I’ve been exploring her music this week, after hearing and reading a lot about her in the past couple of years without actually getting around to checking her out properly. I find all her songs to be quite lovely – her vocals are beautiful – but I prefer the more uptempo tracks to her slower ones.

Gold Rush – Basia Bulat

Basia Bulat is currently touring to promote her latest release Heart Of My Own, with dates planned for the USA and Europe. Check her website for details.

Kate Nash, back on track

Oh, thank goodness. For a moment, I thought that Kate Nash had gone completely troppo. I mean really, listen to this:

I Just Love You More – Kate Nash

Shudder.

Now this is more like it:

Do Wah Do – Kate Nash

This cover ain’t too shabby either:

Fluorescent Adolescent (Arctic Monkeys Cover) – Kate Nash

Kate Nash’s new album is called My Best Friend Is You and is set for release on April 20.

(Image from Brit Music Scene)