Move On Up

 

Yesterday, I received the news that the apartment I have been living in for 13 years has been sold. My landlord informed me 16 months ago that it was going to be sold. Since then, I have been hoping that an investor would be found who would allow me to continue living here as a tenant. However, this is no longer possible, and I will have to find new accommodation in the course of this year. 

I'm far from complaining about this, but over the next few months I'll be looking around the competitive housing market and hoping to find an affordable apartment. I remain optimistic that I'll succeed. Until then, here are a few songs with moving or relocating in the title.

Whistling Thursday

 

The first song of this weeks edition is a cover version of a song by John Lennon. I thought about presenting the original but for me the best version is by RoxyMusic. Recorded during their Avalon tour in 1982 in Glasgow it shows how good they were at these days. It was shown also when they covered Neil Young's Like A Hurricane.

This song was very high in the charts back in 2006. It's from Peter, Björn and John an indie-pop band from Stockholm, Sweden. A classic trio with a short-term talent to deliver concise hooks.

At last a classic from The Clash's London Calling album, where you have to listen carefully at the end of the song to hear the whistling.

That's How It Sounded In The Beginning

 

In November 2019, I was in Munich for a training course and took the opportunity to see Calexico live. It was a joint tour with Iron & Wine, and my younger brother had already introduced me to Sam Bean, the man behind Iron & Wine, years ago. I have to admit that when I first heard his songs, I wasn't really that impressed. Live, however, his songs have a completely different intensity, which is best heard on his 2002 debut album The Creek Drank the Cradle. 

The debut is simply instrumented with guitar and banjo, which, however, provide an excellent foundation for his deep and soft voice. Musically, he is influenced by early Neil Young, when he picked up the acoustic guitar. In the second part, clear references to Nick Drake can be heard. For me, this is his most coherent album, as he has become increasingly drawn to jazz over time and does not shy away from electronic means.

Iron & Wine - An Angry Blade

Iron & Wine - Faded From The Winter

Iron & Wine - Weary Memory

Rose

 

This little indie-pop gem arrived these days via the mailing list of London's Heavenly Recordings. Marsy is also a London based band led by Hannah Rogers a singer/songwriter who is also responsible for most of the songs. As far as I know they released only two double A-singles and this one grabbed me because of Hannah's voice and the subtle but effective use of guitars. 

Monday's Long Song

 

From time to time I feel like I need to listen to something by Ed Kuepper again. Kuepper is a German-born Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. Some of you will know him as a co-founder of The Saints. Less well known is the music of the successor band, The Laughing Clowns. With her, he explored the tension between proto-punk, jazz, and soul. It was a big risk, as a completely different style of music was dominating the global scene when their debut album was released. So it's no surprise that their record received little attention. 

Consequently, he began releasing solo albums in the mid-1980s, with his debut Electrical Storm being the best, combining the power of punk with great guitar sound. Blind Girl Stripper was released in 1992 on his sixth album Black Ticket Day and it is a tour de force of classic guitar based rock with strings. One of the latest masterpieces of Australian's finest guitar players.

Ed Kuepper - Blind Girl Stripper

Old Songs On Sunday

 

The recent days I found an article over an Austrian radio station fm4.orf featuring an more than 50 years old song by Adriano Celentano, probably the best Italian singer in these days. A stomper with a crazy background you can read on their page.

He was very famous in the seventies as a actor in B-movies at the side of Ornella Muti, but also as a singer when he occasionally denounced political conditions such as corruption in Italy.

God's Lonely Man

 

Anna Calvi continues her collaboration with various artists. After releasing her highly successful collaboration with Perfume Genius some time ago, it was obviously inevitable that she would team up with Iggy Pop for a song. 

The result sounds more perfect than one could have imagined. Iggy conducts a destructive inner monologue in the background, while nervous guitars, driving drums, and Calvi's raw presence provide a counterpoint in the foreground. Well done.