thus spake drake: m ward

Showing posts with label m ward. Show all posts

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Now Downloading: New Releases 04.10.12 - Alabama Shakes, M. Ward

Alabama Shakes dish some soulful rock on their debut release.

There's plenty of post-Easter, post-Passover new releases to sneeze at as you reach for the Clariton amidst all the bloomage (YOU SWORE, NO MORE FLOWER METAPHORS!). It's Spring Break somewhere, so pop in a few of these tasty offerings in your portable media player choice (is it any wonder folks will write 'iPod' even if they don't own one?) and lie back in the break destination of your choice. I'm off to San Jose del Cabo, myself, for a few days of ~~carpel tunnel recovery~~rest and relaxation from all this unemployment I've been filling my day with. Highlights this week include the anticipated debut from Alabama Shakes, and the latest from M. Ward, Amandou & Miriam, Graham Coxon, Black Dice, Choir of Young Believers, Emily Wells, Grand Duchy, Pelican, Eternal Smmers, Alex Winston, Dinosaur Feathers, Sleepy Sun and a compelling collaboration between Trembling Bells and Bonnie "Prince" Billy.

Playlist: New Releases 04.10.12: Spotify

Alabama Shakes - Boys & Girls [Insound]
Stream or mp3 purchase via Google Play / iTunes / Stream via Rhapsody / Stream via Spotify

The Muscle Shoalsish rock and soul of Alabama Shakes has been the talk of the music industry leading up to and since last month's SXSW music festival in Austin, so to say that their debut was anticipated is a bit of an understatement. Their live shows have become revivals of sorts, building audiences into sweat-infused calls of "Amen." While on the surface, their debut does nothing to disappoint in its content and execution, but you still can't feel like something is missing. All the buzz around the quartet is behind its energetic live shows, and Boys & Girls, while perfunctory in content and execution, feels like it's missing some of the fire that their stage performances have. Since B&G was recorded before all the buzz and industry build up, their debut perhaps serves as a sort of prequel to the real thing, and in that regard, it's a perfectly good introduction to the band. "You Ain't Alone" is the centerpiece of the album, with singer Brittany Howard's throaty delivery begging and pleading the listener onto their knees, as close to an approximation to their live show as we'll get. All told, B&G is fine album that only buckles a bit under elevated expectations.

Free AOL Album Stream

M. Ward - A Wasteland Companion
Purchase [Stream or mp3 purchase via Google Play] / iTunes / Stream via Rhapsody or Stream via Spotify

If 2006's Post-War may have seemed like M. Ward's breakthrough release, but looking back, that was just for those who follow indie rock (basically, those who matter -- am I right?). It's his side projects that have garnered the most attention, first as the instrument of She & Him with Zooey Deschanel, and then as part of the supergroup of sorts, Monsters of Folk (with Coner Oberst, Jim James and Mike Mogis). Add to that all the sideman work (he's also played with Norah Jones, Neko Case, Bright Eyes, Jenny Lewis) and production and it's hard to imagine Ward's spent more than a minute alone in the last decade (which is really something considering how introverted Ward seemed when he first came on the scene). So it's no surprise that his latest solo release is like a parade of guest stars (18 in total), featuring Zooey Deschanel, Steve Shelley (Sonic Youth), Howe Gelb, Mike Mogis, Tobey Leaman (Dr. Dog), Tom Hagerman (Devotchka) among others. As such, A Wasteland Companion is stylistically all over the place, yet under the steady hand of Ward's production, it all comes across organic and, well... very M. Wardish. Highlights include the Zooey Deschanel duet and Daniel Johnston cover "Sweetheart" (someone should get Johnston and Deschanel together for a wide-eyed quirk-off), the easy picked/strum of opener and Big Star name check "Clean Slate (for Alex & El Goodo)" and the breezy "The First Time I Ran Away" (video below).

More on the radar (and in the mp3 player) this week:
Graham Coxon - A+E [Insound]
Trembling Bells & Bonnie "Prince" Billy - The Marble Downs [emusic]
Amadou & Mariam - Folia [emusic] / Free AOL Album Stream
Black Dice - Mr. Impossible [emusic] / "Pinball Wizard" [Soundcloud]
Choir of Young Believers - Rhine Gold [Google Play]
Pelican - Ataraxia/Taraxis [Google Play] / Free AOL Album Stream / "Lathe Biosas" [mp3]
Emily Wells - Mama [Google Play] / "Passenger" [mp3]
Grand Duchy - Let the People Speak [Google Play] / "Silver Boys" [mp3 via Facebook]
Eternal Summers - Dawn of the Eternal Summers [Google Play]
Dinosaur Feathers - Whistle Tips [Google] / Free AOL Album Stream
Alex Winston - King Con [Google Play]
Sleepy Sun - Spine Hits [Google Play]
Florence + the Machine - MTV Unplugged [Google Play]
Zambi - House of Baasa [Google Play]

tags: music, album review, alabama shake, m ward, indie rock, new releases

Monday, April 09, 2012

Music on TV - Week of 04.09.12: M. Ward, Alabama Shakes

M. Ward, in support of new album, is scheduled to perform on Conan, Tuesday night.

Picks for the week
Monday, April 9
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Tennis
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Esperanza Spalding
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Pulp, Seun Kuti
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Jessie Baylin
Tuesday, April 10
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Slash
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Shooter Jennings
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Eric Turner featuring Lupe Fiasco and Tinie Tempah
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: White Rabbits
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Dr. Dog
SYNDICATION: The Ellen Degeneres Show: Bonnie Raitt
TBS: Conan: M. Ward
Wednesday, April 11
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Civil Wars
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Kaiser Chiefs
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Neon Trees
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: The Ting Tings, Lenny Williams
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Foster the People
Thursday, April 12
ABC: The View: Shooter Jennings
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Shins
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Alabama Shakes
COMEDY CENTRAL: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Esperanza Spalding
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Feist
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Lee Fields and the Expressions
TBS: Conan: Arctic Monkeys
Friday, April 13
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Bonnie Raitt
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: FaR*eAst Movement
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Bear Hands (REPEAT)
Saturday, April 14
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Gotye
PBS: Austin City Limits: John Legend & The Roots
Sunday, April 15
HDNET: HDNET Concert Series: Chris Isaak

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Built to (NOT) Spill

Arriving just in time for my weekend road trip, Built to Spill's latest There is No Enemy provided the perfect relief from the upteenth time through They Might Be Giants' Here Comes Science. While it's cute hearing your four-year old singing about the elements and circulatory system, the wife and I needed some Doug Marsch guitar redemption.

At first There Is No Enemy is kind of lulling, but slowly but surely, moments arrive, melodies burrow and before we knew it, the album has already become a staple. In advance of the street date release next Tuesday (October 6), there's a couple tracks streaming.

"Things Fall Apart" is the kind of sprawling workout that we've come to expect from the Boise band, if a bit more focused than past releases, that is right up until the guitar solos kick in.

Meanwhile, "Hindsight" is the rare efficient pop song from the band, clocking in at just over three minutes, getting it's point across quickly while still leaving enough space for Doug's axe to work its magic, via slide or arpeggio melodies up the guitar neck. And then the repeated refrain "What about Canada?" comes on, and everything seems so connected.

You see, we were North of the border for the wedding of our good friends and neighbors Chad & Lindsey, up the Sunshine Coast at Rockwater Secret Cove Resort (Halfmoon Bay). Many in the music blog circle know Chad as the drummer for Friday Mile, as well as being largely responsible for putting together the Doe Bay Fest lineup the past two years. Since we're always soundtracking, might as well point out the lovely couple chose M. Ward songs for the ceremony.

Oh, and yes... it was my birthday as well... happy birthday to me.

Monday, September 21, 2009

Ear on TV: Week of 09.21.09: Monsters of Folk

When Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket) and M. Ward (She & Him) toured together back in 2004, someone in the road crew jokingly dubbed the lineup "The Monsters of Folk." While the name was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, the idea that something so powerful could come from such a quiet genre kind of fits the project. Like an indie rock version of The Traveling Wilburys, Monsters of Folk is the melding of serious singer-songwriters (and multi-instrumentalist Mike Mogis,) who together sound like they're having the time of their life. The band shrugs off the Wilburys as a predecessor, though, preferring Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, if a comparison is to be made.

To promote their self-titled debut, out this week, the 'ubergroup' will make an appearance on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien, performing the lead single, "Say Please" on Tuesday night. The song is a perfect choice, as it has Oberst, James and Ward trading vocal leads and harmonizing on the sunny chorus, much like a certain Traveling Wilburys* hit, "Handle With Care."

*Want more Wilburys parallels? How about the "young Bob Dylan" tag that Oberst got early in his career? Or the soothing Roy Orbison-like falsetto from James? Or how about the quiet cool, ala George Harrison, and behind-the-scenes production wizardry from M. Ward that rivals Jeff Lynne during his busiest years? If Jeff Tweedy would've been involved, it would be complete, filling in the Tom Petty role, quite nicely.

Elsewhere, Lynyrd Skynyrd (the band that can't be killed), soldiers on after a rough year, losing two more of the band's key members -- co-founder and keyboardist Billy Powell and longtime bassist Ean Evan both passed away earlier this year. Before passing, both contributed to the band's first album in six year, Gods & Guns, whose release (September 29) they promote on Conan Monday night. Likewise, Living Colour have released their first album in six years as well, The Chair in the Door. They take their face-melting guitar work, courtesy of Vernon Reid, to the stage on Fallon, which was probably an easy booking for The Roots to sell.

Finally, U2 is the musical guest for the season premiere of Saturday Night Live. By now it's expected that the megastars would play three songs, but given that it's a premiere night and there's the spectacle of Megan Fox hosting, might that be time wasted? May I suggest a sketch involving Fox in her underwear, face bloodied like her character from Jennifer's Body, dancing to "Sunday Bloody Sunday?" You know the saying, two great tastes.

Playlist: Picks for the week
Monday, September 21
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Matt & Kim (REPEAT)
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears
NBC: The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien: Lynyrd Skynyrd
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Living Colour
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Franz Ferdinand (REPEAT)
SYNDICATION: Live With Regis and Kelly: David Gray
Tuesday, September 22
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Kid Cudi
NBC: The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien: Monsters of Folk
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Mat Kierney
Wednesday, September 23
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Mary J. Blige
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Arctic Monkeys
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Amazing Baby
Thursday, September 24
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Snow Patrol
NBC: The Jay Leno Show: Smokey Robinson with Joss Stone
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Phoenix
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Paolo Nutini
SYNDICATION: The Ellen Degeneres Show: Noisettes
Friday, September 25
NBC: The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien: Rodrig y Gabriela
Saturday, September 26
NBC: Saturday Night Live: U2

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Now Downloading: New Releases 02.17.09

It's another big release week highlighted by new releases from M. Ward, Morrissey, Alela Diane, Robyn Hitchcock, Sam Roberts, Beirut (which we highlighted a couple weeks ago,) Jason Isbell, Asobi Seksu, Vetiver and Tommy Keene. There's also Red Hot Compilation album Dark Was the Night, curated by The National, and featuring a who's who of indie rock.

Playlist: New Releases 02.17.09

M. Ward - Hold Time
Stream / Purchase [mp3]

Portland's Matt Ward is a busy man these days, what with all the producing, guesting and side projects (She & Him with Zooey Deschanel). So it's no wonder that he wants to Hold Time, as I imagine it's quite a commodity for the in-demand musician. Ward's timeless production is on full display here, and it's what put him on the top of more than a few artists list as producer they'd like to work with. As a result, Ward has a lot more friends now, which is why this album comes off as more a M. Ward and Friends album than a normal stellar Ward release. Deschenal sings on a couple songs (more Him than She,) Lucinda Williams lends her pipes to another, and Granddaddy's Jason Lytle brings his ELO fascination Ward's production ("To Save Me" -- and the results would make Jeff Lynne proud). I like the album, but it falls a little short of the bar Ward set with his last two releases.

Free AOL Album Stream
Download: "Never Had No One Like You" [mp3]

Sam Roberts - Love at the End of the World
Stream / Purchase [mp3]

Everybody has a band or artist they love that sometimes defies explanation, and Sam Roberts is like that for me. I first found myself in his clutches after he put out the Inhuman EP, and have been following him since. His third proper release takes a step back from the concept-y Chemical City and returns a bit to the first album, We Were Born in a Flame, relying more on singles than a whole album's connecivity. Aside from the fun "Them Kids," there's nothing here as catchy the singles from WWBIAF, but that doesn't matter to me, since everything he records seems to bypass my critical ear. I think it may be a live thing, as Roberts turns it up on notch on stage. Catch him on his current tour, you won't regret it.

Free AOL Album Stream

Alela Diane - To Be Still
Stream / Purchase [mp3]

Alela Diane comes across as a sort of female version of Nick Drake, or dare I say it, a young Joni Mitchell. With that comes the good and the bad, the good being the benefits from such favorable comparisons, the bad being the feeling that you've heard it before. But the self-produced release is more than up to the comparisons, just listen to "White Diamonds" once, and it's hard to deny the talent. It's a release that promises great things to come for the folk chanteuse.

Free AOL Album Stream
Download: "White as Diamonds" [mp3]

Monday, February 16, 2009

Ear on TV: Week of February 16 - Lily Allen

This is one stacked week, as the talkies have seemingly upped their game for Conan O'Brien's final week hosting Late Night. Leno, as if anticipating his replacement, has booked a very Conan-like music lineup for the week, procuring Andrew Bird, Oscar lock A.R. Rahman and Monday night's starting off point, Lily Allen.

The UK star just hit number one in her home country for both song ("The Fear") and album (It's Not Me, It's You) while also making headlines for advising parents to let their kids try drugs. Besides Leno, the spunky Allen will also be on Ellen (Wednesday) and look for her to be a little more tight-lipped with US audiences (see her chat with Matt Lauer last week). For instance, don't expect her to go flashing us her third nipple.

While the Lily Allen stateside onslaught is already in progress, A.R. Rahman's is about to begin. Already the biggest pop star in India, Rahman's work for Slumdog Millionaire is almost guaranteed to win him an Oscar -- likely two -- and place him on a bigger stage here in the US. He'll be performing one of his two nominated songs -- "Jai Ho" with singer Sukhwinder Singh -- on Leno Thursday, and then an abbreviated version of it and "O Saya" for the Oscar telecast. And by "abbreviated" I mean part of a medley of all three nominated songs, limited to 65 seconds each. This new limitation is what led Peter Gabriel (the other nominated artist) to pull out of performing as a protest. His song for Wall-E, "Down to Earth," (which normally runs 6 minutes) will now likely be performed by the Soweto Gospel Choir. Meanwhile, M.I.A., Rahman's other collaborator, just had her baby this past Wednesday and it's probably too soon to expect her to make it back to the stage. I guess stranger things have happened -- like performing at the Grammys with contractions on her due date.

Finally, it's the final week for Late Night Conan O'Brien before Jimmy Fallon steps in and Conan disappears for a couple months getting ready for the Tonight Show gig. To send him off, White Stripes are playing their first public performance since the summer of 2007. They have a history with O'Brien, going back to even before appearances on the show (they played five nights in a row back in 2003). Conan has known Meg and Jack White since before they were even The White Stripes, which goes a long ways explaining Conan's appearance in their Michel Gondry directed video for "Denial Twist."

Wow ... all that and no mention of Letterman's stellar first half of the week. He's got Willie Nelson with Asleep at the Wheel on Monday, M. Ward on Tuesday, and Antony and the Johnsons stopping by on Wednesday. Any other week, those would be the leads, my friends.

Playlist: Picks for the week
Monday, February 16
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Lenka (REPEAT)
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Willie Nelson with Asleep at the Wheel
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Living Things
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Lily Allen
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: thenewno2
Tuesday, February 17
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: M. Ward
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Funeral Party
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Andrew Bird
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Lykke Li
Wednesday, February 18
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Antony and the Johnsons
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Lisa Hannigan
SUNDANCE: Spectacle: Elvis Costello With...: Elton John, Diana Krall
SYNDICATION: The Ellen Degeneres Show: Lily Allen
Thursday, February 19
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Razorlight
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: A.R. Rahman, Sukhwinder Singh
Friday, February 20
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Kinky
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: The Knux
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Chris Isaak
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: White Stripes
Saturday, February 21
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Kanye West
PBS: Austin City Limits: Kings of Leon, Roky Erickson
Sunday, February 21
ABC: The Academy Awards: A.R. Rahman, Sukhwinder Singh, M.I.A. (maybe???)

Monday, May 14, 2007

Uncomfortably Numb

Just because Tony's paranoid doesn't mean there's not someone out to get him. As the downward spiral continues to the end of the series, Tony's insulating himself by cutting off his confidants one by one, and this episode saw him snuff out probably the most significant of them all (consider this your spoiler alert.) As always, The Sopranos utilizes music to tell the story, and the theme song here was "Comfortably Numb" (making it two weeks in a row that an episode has started with that Pink Floyd number.)

While last week had Tony mumbling the tune, leaving it open for debate on it's significance, this week it's cemented into the plot in a couple of ways. Christopher pops a CD of Music From The Motion Picture The Departed into the stereo (it's the lead track,) while he and Tony sing Martin Scorsese's praises. Of course creator David Chase has reference Scorsese before, mostly homages to Goodfellas, but this one is far more overt. The Departed plotline of an undercover cop infiltrating the mob is a nod to Tony's (justified) paranoia about Chrissy. It's more then that though, as Scorsese's use of the particular version of the song speaks multitudes in both The Departed and in The Sopranos.

The song itself was a live recording (video) featuring Van Morrison (singing David Gilmour's part) from an all-star re-staging that Roger Waters did of The Wall in 1990 (The Wall: Live in Berlin,) to commemorate the fall of the Berlin Wall just a few months prior. They setup the stage at Potsdamer Platz, that strip of no mans land between the East and West wall. While cleaning up the area, they found a smorgasbord of Soviet armaments and even a furnished Nazi bunker (not Hitler's as some rumors would have it.) It's this long-buried evil rearing it's head later that is a key to Scorsese's drama, and even more so to Chase's Sopranos, so it's hard not to forgive him for borrowing it.

The lyrics given emphasis here are "I cannot put my finger on it now / The child is grown, the dream is gone / I have become comfortably numb" which in last week's episode corresponded with Tony's disappointment with his son, AJ, so it's no surprise that Tony seems to be in the same mood here with his mafia son Chris. The songs lyrics also speak to the ease of one's pain, more specifically through drug use (legend has it Waters wrote the lyrics base on an experience with prescribed painkillers.) Christopher is high when he crashes the car, and later Tony hypocritically eases his pain through similar means (albeit, more of the 'organic' variety.)

Of course, there's more going on here then just being numb in comfort, naturally, as every song fits into place with the plot. When Chris' wake causes, and drives the strip to Lucinda Williams' "Are You Alright?" - which is a more then valid question. Later, Tony meets up with Chris' old stripper friend of Chris (Sonya, played by The L Word's Sarah Shahi) to deliver the bad news, and we here M Ward's "Outta My Head" - which is an apt description of Tony's state of mind. He's unconsciously becoming Christopher, showing that there was a bit of jealousy in there thrown in with his resentment. As Tony has proxy sex with Sonya, The Pretender's "Adultress" plays, and he's finally able to follow through on an affair with one of Chris' ladies (see Adriana and Julianna.) The Pretenders continue to provide the soundtrack with "Space Invader" as Tony gets high, ultimately leading to some peyote.

Out of their minds, Tony and Sonya walk through the casino to the roulette wheel, where Tony wins roll after roll, much like the gambler in the Twilight Episode referenced a couple episodes ago ("Chasing It," Episode 616.) This, you'll remember, turns out to be hell, so when they stumble into the desert and Tony sees a sunset that looks a lot like his Costa Mesa coma dreams, I'm reminded of the theory a lot of folks had about that being a sort of purgatory that Tony was visiting. As he sees the light, he yells, "I get it!" and it's pretty obvious that he doesn't, even if Calexico's "Minas De Cobre (For Better Metal)" contributes to the Carlos Castaneda-like setting.

Playlist: The Sopranos - Ep618
1. "Comfortably Numb" - Roger Waters - Christopher and Tony driving home, crash
2. "Are You Alright?" - Lucinda Williams - Tony drives on the Las Vegas strip
3. "Outta My Head" - M. Ward - Tony meets Sonya at her apartment
4. "Get It Crunk" - Lil' Flip - AJ and his friends get in a fight outside of the fraternity
5. "The Adultress" - Pretenders - Sonya rides Tony
6. "Space Invader" - Pretenders - Sonya and Tony talk in bed
7. "Sophisticated Lady" - Duke Ellington - Phil talks to Tony on the phone in his social club
8. "Minas De Cobre (For Better Metal)" - Calexico - End credits

More: Anyone notice the seemingly random Katherine Hepburn interivew with Dick Cavett that Carm watched when she couldn't sleep? Hepburn would've turned 100 this past weekend, and my bet is it was a tribute to the "First Lady of Cinema." Regarding addiction, she says in the interview: "Cold sober, I find myself absolutely fascinating." I think we pretty much all did, Kate.

Previously: Manly Solutions (Episode 617)

tags: playlist, the sopranos, television, hbo, soundtrack, roger waters, pink floyd, the departed, martin scorsese, the wall, m ward, calexico, carlos castaneda, rhapsody