Welcome to the last round of featuring songs that didn't leave out the harmonica. Let's start with an old song by Ewan MacCall which has been covered by many artists over the years. One of the finest versions is by The Pogues.
At the start of his career, there was hardly a single photo of Neil Young in which he wasn’t seen playing a harmonica.
It’s hard to believe that ‘Tangled Up In Blue’ is already 50 years old and still sounds as fresh as it did back then.
I’ve never really been into Canned Heat’s blues rock/boogie, but this song had to be included in this series.
The same goes for the pop-rockers Supertramp.
Next week will probably feature a series focusing on hand clapping.
In the early 90's, grunge reached its peak. A lot of new bands appeared and many of them wanted to sound like Nirvana or Pearl Jam. Really good new and innovative bands were hard to find. Fortunately, after releasing a few EP's, Pavement put out their debut album, Slanted and Enchanted, in 1992.
Originally, Pavement was just another garage band from California, but Stephen Malkmus, the band's frontman, had bigger plans. He had a knack for hiding brilliant melodies behind a massive wall of noise. The guitars cut through the songs, the bass rumbles, and you’d think Moe Tucker was playing the drums. At first listen, it all sounds discordant, and Malkmus’ lyrics are so cryptic that I still don’t understand them to this day. But anyone who gives the music a chance will realize that this is a band that has far more to offer than just noise.
When you’re browsing social media, it’s inevitable that you’ll eventually come across clips that try to make that orange-haired and, unfortunately, dangerous lunatic from America look ridiculous. Most of them are AI-generated and generally not worth mentioning. I recently came across one such clip and would have long since forgotten it if it hadn’t been set to a song I’ve liked since I was young.
It was recorded 60 years ago by Jerry Samuels, an American singer-songwriter performing under the pseudonym Napoleon XIV. In the song, he narrates in the first person how he is slowly losing his mind because his love has left him, and how he is looking forward to being admitted to a psychiatric hospital. To top it all off, he reveals at the end that it wasn’t a woman but his dog. As if that weren't crazy enough, he had the same song pressed on the B-side of his single, but it plays completely backward.
That same year, Bryna Raeburn, an American radio actress, released a response as Josephine XIV.
I know it's total nonsense, but the mix of a thumping snare drum, bass drum, tambourine, and siren still works and rightly became a one-hit wonder.
Regular visitors to this site probably know that I have a soft spot for Nottingham's Coyote. Timm Sure and Richard Hampson, the DJ's and producers behind this project, have been consistently releasing new takes on the Balearic sound for years. They recently released another six-track EP titled The Higher The Sky, The Deeper The Ocean. On this EP, they expand their signature sound with psychedelic elements, celebrating an almost meditative downbeat sound and ambient house. On this EP, they expand their signature sound with psychedelic elements, celebrating an almost meditative downbeat vibe, dubby bass lines, and ambient house. There are few artists today who create music as relaxed and beautiful as these two.
At the end of last year Nick & June released their last album New Year's Fear which I only became aware of last week. Released after Nick Wolf and Suzie-Lou Kraft had ended their long-term relationship but still working as a band. Both are from Nuremberg, Germany, and currently live in Berlin. It’s worth noting that her songs aren’t solely about the pain of heartbreak. Despite this, her sound has a melancholic, contemplative undertone that is most reminiscent of Bon Iver and Mazzy Star. You could describe it as indie folk that captivates with reverb-soaked guitars, gently pulsating beats, and harmonized vocals. It’s an album I’ll be listening to a lot more.
There are still artists out there who couldn't care less about which musical genre is currently in vogue. One of them is Fay Fife, who has just released her new album under the moniker Countess Of Five. On this album, she clearly pays homage to her love of country music, but she also really lets the guitars rip. It’s in a league of its own compared to when she left her mark on The Rezillos/Revillos’ songs with her voice decades ago. Her duet with Kirsten Adamson (yes, Stuart’s daughter) alone makes this album worth checking out. An unexpected but compelling comeback by an almost forgotten singer. Thanks to the folks at Last Night From Glasgow for this.
Last autumn Hollie Cook released her last album Shy Girl, another fine reggae-pop album in the tradition of the so called 'Lover's Rock' sound. An album full of wonderful melodies carried by Hollie's clear voice.
Just as she has done in the past, she’s once again taken the entire album to a whole new level with plenty of dub, just in time for Record Store Day. Just as she has done in the past, she’s once again taken the entire album to a whole new level with plenty of dub, just in time for Record Store Day. She gives the songs a deeper, darker quality that’s much more rooted in soundsystem culture. An album that’s perfect for summer days like the ones we’re already enjoying.
The harmonica is typically associated with blues and folk music as a key instrument alongside the acoustic guitar. This makes it all the more surprising when musicians from the indie and electronic scenes use it.The harmonica is typically associated with blues and folk music as a key instrument alongside the acoustic guitar. This makes it all the more surprising when musicians from the indie and electronic scenes use it.
Matt Johnson released what is perhaps his best album, Dusk, as The The in 1993. Its success is largely due to Johnny Marr, who, in addition to playing tasteful guitar parts, also plays the harmonica, which carries nearly the entire album.
The French electronic duo Air has regularly expanded their sound by collaborating with guest musicians. This was also the case in 2001, when they worked with Beck on their album 10,000 Hz Legend in addition to vocals, Beck also contributed harmonica.
Camper Van Beethoven, who helped pioneer indie rock in California in the early 1980s alongside bands like Black Flag and Sonic Youth, released their final album in 1989 before disbanding. As on their earlier albums, they remained true to their surrealistic, humorous folk rock.
In the comments section of my post from yesterday, Ernie mentioned another band with a similar name that he likes better. Yeah Yeah Noh was an indie band formed in Leicester in 1983. They were jangly and lo-fi, with a singer sporting a distinctive bald spot who spoke rather than sang. They sound like a mellow Midlands version of The Fall. Their lyrics were ironic, sardonic, and silly, and they had the audacity to embrace psychedelia, which wasn’t particularly in vogue (with all due respect to Televison Personalities). A good but sadly forgotten band.
As I was typing these lines, I was reminded of the Yé-Yé music of the early 1960s in France. This genre is said to be named after the “yeah” often heard in British pop music. I wouldn’t go that far, but would rather call them chansons interspersed with pop references. The best example is Michel Polnareff, who combined these elements in his songs.
Yé-Yé is, however, primarily associated with female singers, as the French in continental Europe were more willing to accept pop music in their native language. This allowed artists such as Françoise Hardy, France Gall, Sylvie Vartan establish themselves in the charts during those times. Much like Rita Pavone did in Italy at the same time.
The new century was barely two years old when a band emerged from the United States that took garage rock to a whole new level. With Karen O., they had a wild front woman whose vocals, in the broadest sense, were reminiscent of PJ Harvey, but who could also strike a softer note. Nick Zinner contributes impressive guitar passages to the songs, which, taken as a whole, no longer have much in common with the punk attitude of the debut EP. The fact that YYYs manages without a bass is thanks to Brian Chase’s accentuated drums.
In addition to the upbeat tracks like “Rich” and “Man,” it’s the longer songs that really stand out—thanks to Karen’s voice and the breaks and tempo changes that would suit Sonic Youth just fine. The fact that they pay homage to their roots at the end makes them all the more endearing. “Modern Romance” could easily be an outtake from Velvet’s debut album.
In 1973 Roxy Music released their second album For Your Pleasure after causing a sensation in the glam rock scene with their debut. A few songs on this album Editions Of You and Do The Strand lived up to expectations for further chart success. Much more interesting, however, were the songs in which they took an experimental approach. The Bogus Man is about a mentally deranged sex offender. Ferry delivers the vocals with a similarly deranged intensity. For ten minutes, Roxy Music turns it into a playground of madness. The saxophone oscillates between delirium and free jazz, shifting from the left to the right channel. Eno uses the then-novel idea of looping to create his effects. Manzanera’s guitar weaves in psychedelic sounds, and the drums, symbolizing the stalker’s restlessness, echo the motoric beats of Can and Neu! A masterpiece far ahead of their time.
I'm back from a few days in Budapest and would like to introduce a band from Brighton that's new to me and I first heard them in a wonderful pub that used to be a factory building. Lime Garden is a four piece all female band and they play some kind of indie pop. With a driving beat and rockin' guitars paired with a catchy melody, they've written a song that isn't anything out of the ordinary, but one that will always remind me of my days in Hungary.
In 1970 Black Sabbath released their self titled debut album. It was a monument in heavy metal and screaming guitars combined with a bluesy harmonica.
David Bowie released this song in 1973 on his album Aladine Sane when glam rock was at its peak. A timeless classic even though people keep claiming that the song sounds too much like Blockbuster by The Sweet
Ten years later Elton John released another highlight of his later work, in which he dared to incorporate a harmonica that sounded as if it were being played by Stevie Wonder.
By the time you read this, I’ll have already been in Hungary’s capital, Budapest, for a few days. It’s a city I’ve wanted to visit for a long time, but Orban’s regime has kept me from going until now.
During the last weekend I found a song in the back of my hard drive. Shortly before The Sugarcubes broke up, they released It's It, an album of remixes from their debut album Life's Too Good. The standout performance came from Justin Robertson, who demonstrated just how much potential Birthday has. The standout mix came from Justin Robertson, who showcased Birthday’s potential. He transformed the new wave track into a dub gem.
Years later the brothers Reid did also an excellent Rework of Birthday.
And finally some songs with more post-punk power from their early days. Remember when I saw them live in summer 1989 on an open-air festival playing these songs.
Nothing has been posted here by Andy Bell for several years, and it's time to change that. 2019 saw the debut Andy Bell under his moniker GLOK, Dissident. It was an album I played often at this time because I was impressed by it's sound. Inspired by krautrock and house Bell layered guitars and synths on top of each other, letting them flow from the speakers in seemingly endless waves. It’s all so understated, and every note is perfectly placed. The songs have a hypnotic quality that draws you right into them. Yeah, it sounds corny, but I still love this album.
In the east of Ireland, there’s a small town called Bray in a county called Wicklow. Seven years ago, a group of childhood friends started making music there, and they recently released a new EP. They first appeared on this blog just under a year ago, when they released an EP. At the time, I wrote the result is nothing more and nothing less than a fantastic indie pop song about the end of a relationship. And that’s exactly where they pick up the thread: with clear song structures, powerful indie guitars that, in the broadest sense, bring to mind The Cranberries, catchy hooks, and Lily Aron’s clear voice. Nothing more and nothing less than what a good indie pop song should be.
Last year Penelope Trappes released her last album A Requiem, featuring dark, menacing avant-garde pop and ambient elements. The central themes of all the songs are death, fear, and self-destruction. Her hollow-sounding vocals, paired with a cello, take some getting used to, but they are utterly captivating. Now they've had some of their songs reworked, and Saint Etienne manages to lighten the somber mood a bit.
The new edition of songs featuring the harmonica kicks off with the wonderful Joni Mitchell. In 1974, she released *Miles of Aisles*, one of her most successful albums, recorded live in Los Angeles. It was the first time she had performed with a full backing band, which lent her songs a special depth.
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are an Australian psych-rock band that isn't afraid to incorporate folk, garage and surf rock into their sound.
Finally, some Maori pop from 1996. OMC had only become famous for their global hit before fading back into obscurity.
Nottingham's DJ's/producers Timm Sure and Richard Hampson aka Coyote returns with a couple of new songs to disappear only to disappear back into the realm of dub. Nag Champa is a classic Indian incense scent prized for its calming, balancing, and purifying effects on the body and mind. I don’t know how many incense sticks they burned before these songs were finished, but the result is impressive. On Nag Champa they celebrate a sound that evokes the best days of Lee Perry yet remains distinct in its own right. A song destined for the year-end charts.
While doing my research for Harmonica Day, I couldn't help but listen to Bob Dylan's old songs again. “Desolation Row” was released in 1965 and once again showcases Dylan’s penchant for surreal lyrics. To this day, many have attempted to interpret it, yet no one has found the definitive explanation. For me, it is simply a description of a place where urban chaos reigns, a chaos that cannot be resolved. Lifelessness, depression, murder, and loneliness all converge there. Or simply one of his best songs.
I realize that a song released a year ago can’t exactly be called new. But I only found out about Cloth—the band formed by Scottish twins Paul and Rachael Swinton—yesterday, when my youngest brother invited me to a concert at the last minute. Unfortunately, I already had other plans for the evening and missed what was probably a great show.
Golden is from their album Pink Silence released last year and sounds most like Mogwai, if they were to play indie pop. Sparkling and occasionally distorted guitar lines, harmonies, and basslines that are unobtrusive yet commanding, combined with Rachael’s whispered vocals, create a multi-layered sound that captivates the listener.
It was only a question of time until Gang Of Four will issue a statement on the current situation. Given their nationality and their own frontman, there’s obviously a certain irony in the fact that they’re now chanting No Kings Here! The song is snappy and catchy, with a strumming style that’s as energetic as it is funky, and it sets the stage for lyrics that are unambiguously direct, delivered with more fire than one would have expected from the band. Word has it that a new album is also in the works. In that sense, this song leaves you wanting more.
II can hardly believe that this Van Morrison song is already 56 years old. Moondance is from his third album and is an incredibly great blend of rhythm and blues, soul, and folk, with his voice in top form.
Even the pub rockers from Dr. Feelgood couldn't resist using the harmonica from time to time.
War was a Californian funk band that was popular in the 1970's. I first heard this song in that crazy stoner movie Up In Smoke.
Flashback: London in the mid-1970s. Studded leather jackets and mohawks, Doc Martens boots and ripped jeans, safety pins and canned beer push the Empire to the brink of a national crisis. It all started with punk and the Sex Pistols, in whose orbit Susan Ballion—aka Siouxsie Sioux—also moved. And as was common back then, she, too, was convinced that she could make music with very little money.
And indeed, in 1978 they released the single Hong Kong Garden, which immediately caused a stir. Not only did they slow down the tempo of punk, but they also gave it a much darker edge, which caught people’s attention.
That same year, they released their debut album, The Scream, which further explored this dark side. John McKay’s razor-sharp guitar, Budgie’s voodoo drums, and Siouxsie Sioux’s echoing vocals made this album a blueprint for many post-punk bands.
Does anyone else remember Nightmares On Wax's masterpiece Inner Space Outta Sound? If not, you should catch up on it or at least listen to its newer versions.
Adrian Sherwood was commissioned to create a dub version to mark the 20th anniversary of the track's release. Sherwood's version reminds me much to the collaboration between Massive Attack and Mad Professor, which I used to play a lot back then.
While the original album was a carefree, soul-soaked masterpiece that defined the chill-out era, Sherwood takes these tracks and sends them hurtling through the reverb chamber.
Last year Red Snapper, a London based instrumental band, returned after a hiatus with Barb And Feather, an album I listened often. I played it during the eastern time and returned once again to their essential compilation of EP's and reworks Reeled And Skinned from 1995.
Formed in 1993 by drummer Richard Thair and Ali Friend on double bass. Shortly later David Ayers joined on guitar. On their early recordings their music was a mixture of a rough mix of jazz, breakbeats, rockabilly bass, country, surf punk, and early techno. For a few songs Beth Orton joined the trio which imbues the soundscape of In Deep with a dark, chanteuse-like charm. For me it is an another overlooked gem.
Yes, I do it again. I feature Lindsay Jordan aka Snail Mail again. A few weeks ago I featured her with Dead End, an appetizer of her upcoming album Ricochet. Now it was released and more of her indie-rock song are available. It seems that since her last album, she has developed a fondness for string instruments that complement her distorted guitar. After an extensive tour, she had to undergo vocal cord surgery. Otherwise, that would have been it. As you can hear, the surgery went well, because her voice is clearer and softer than before.
Yes, as the headline suggests, I’m going to say a few words today about Paul Simon’s album Graceland. In 1986 he had clearly passed his musical peak and had already recorded another successful live album with Art Garfunkel. So it was all the more surprising when, 40 years ago, he took everyone by surprise with an album. He completely turned his style on its head. Inspired by street music from Johannesburg, he set out to record an album with South African musicians.
With this album, he pioneered world music before the term even existed. It’s a complete album that blends pop/rock with African rhythms. Even decades later, the African tribal beats, strummed guitar chords, and harmonized vocals are still well worth listening to. If Simon managed to get even a few listeners to explore African music, such as King Sunny Ade, he achieved more than many others before and after him.
Paisley Dark Records from Leeds is always a good place for electronic music in all variations. Today they released a new song by Krabberz, a British producer whose name I hadn't heard of until then. The song operates within the broad scope of ALFOS, featuring a laid-back, rolling groove that flows warmly and hypnotically throughout the entire track. The highlights of this song are the remixes by 10:40 and Jay-Son.
Dear Mister Fantasy is a song by Traffic and released 1967. Traffic was in tIn hese days very successful with their psychedelia blues rock. This song is not my favorite of this album but shows how great Steve Winwood's voice was and Dave Mason played a fine guitar.
The Pretenders were always a band I could listen to and this song is from their third album Learning To Crawl. Another example for their sound when Chrissie Hynde's vocals meet classic rock music.
In 793, the Vikings raided Lindisfarne Monastery in northeastern England, looting it and murdering the monks. I can’t say for certain whether Newcastle’s Lindisfarne took their name from this event. What I can say is that in the late 1960's, they played some very good and successful folk rock.
In 1980, while browsing through the box of new punk and new wave releases at my favorite record store, I noticed an album whose cover I didn’t associate with that kind of music. Four students in neat collared shirts, some wearing plastic-framed glasses, look shyly into the camera, and I couldn’t imagine that they were actually influenced by punk.
Still, I gave it a chance and listened to the album, and I haven't regretted it. Still, I gave them a chance and listened to the album Crazy Rhythms and I didn’t regret it. The Feelies were influenced by punk in their early days, but on their debut album they left it far behind and replaced the distorted guitars with pure rhythm.
Million and Mercer didn’t plug their guitars into amplifiers, but directly into the mixing console. The melodies burrow straight into your ears without any detours. Many songs consist of just one or two chords and yet last over five minutes. Drummer Anton Fier almost completely forgoes cymbals and sticks to the heartbeat: bass drum, tom, snare. To balance this out, the band laid a polyrhythmic web of percussion over the songs—dozens of cowbells, claves, sticks, and shakers. An album that set new standards and, with its jangly guitars, has inspired generations.
The Feelies have broken up several times, but have always gotten back together, and in 2023 they paid a magnificent tribute to their idols, The Velvet Underground, with a live album.
Six Years ago Autotelia, a British musical project by Demian Castellanos and Tom Relleen, released their debut album I. It was an album I didn't expected at this time, because their a combination of A free-spirited psychedelic sound that consistently blends guitar with krautrock and ambient wasn't exactly in vogue.
The five songs are structured like suites and, depending on the track, feature a dubby bassline. Thinking Makes It uses swirling psychedelic guitar patterns before becoming heavier and more menacing toward the end.
The title is taken from a quote in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, which is quite rare in modern music. Take 13 minutes for a psychedelic journey through space and enjoy it.
Last week, I came across Pina Palau in an article about new Swiss music. The 33-year-old singer-songwriter lives in Zurich, works full-time as a resident physician in a psychiatric ward, rides a road bike, and has just released her third album, You Better Get Used To It.
Musically, there’s nothing that reminds me of Switzerland; it’s more like indie-folk. Somewhere between Waxahatchee, Courtney Barnett, and the dreamy sound of Bon Iver. Even though her voice sounds a bit thin, her song, backed by delicate guitar and steel guitar, has the potential to stick in your head.
Over the past few days, I’ve had trouble connecting to the internet and posting the articles I’d prepared. The issues on the provider’s end seem to have been resolved, and there’s nothing standing in the way of further posts.
This way, I can continue the series I recently started, featuring songs that more or less include a harmonica, without committing to a specific day.
Let's start with a song by Tom Petty from his last great album Wildflower from 1994. One of my favorite songs on this album is You Don't Know How It Feels, in which he reflects on his work and his future in a slow, unsentimental way.
My old man was born to rock
He's still trying to beat the clock
Think of me what you will
Ive got a little space to fill
In 1982, I spent six weeks traveling through the western United States in a motorhome with some friends. At a gas station, I bought a few music cassettes because I didn’t care for what the radio stations were playing. Among them was Bruce Springsteen’s newly released LP at the time, which I listened to more than once. At the moment, I can’t imagine visiting that country again.
In the early 1990s, INXS was at the height of its popularity, with several songs climbing high in the charts. One of them was Suicide Blonde. The song’s title comes from the night Hutchence and his then-girlfriend Kylie Minogue attended the premiere of the 1989 romantic drama “The Delinquents,” in which Minogue plays the lead role. For the premiere, she wore a blonde wig, the color of which she described as “Suicide Blonde.” The fact that he committed suicide four years later is a tragic footnote, but it has no connection to the song.
In the early 80's I was focused in music to anything that sounded like new wave and came from the UK or Germany. As far as I was concerned, contemporary music from the United States came from the orbit of the Minutemen, Hüsker Dü, and maybe Nu Disco.
Collage rock, as the genre was called before labels like “independent” and “alternative” became established, wasn't on my musical radar. That changed in 1983 when a band from the South released their debut album, Murmur. R.E.M. found immediate success with their fresh sound, which was described as falling somewhere between new wave and The Byrds. And rightly so. The combination of Michael Stipe’s growling vocals, Peter Buck’s folk-flavored guitar playing, Mike Mills’ rumbling bass, and Bill Barry’s powerful, aggressive drumming was simply too good to go unnoticed.
Murmer isn't for sure their best album but it showed the potential they had in these days.
The recent days I rediscovered a band I didn't listen for ages. The band is called Hurrigans (yes, it was a clerical error by printing their first record) and they were Finish Rock and Roll band. Their album Use No Hooks from 1977 is probably the last classic rock album I bought. Hurriganes were a classic three piece band and Finland's answer to pub rock and Dr. Feelgood. I was very in to it these days because the rhythm section was so awesome. Seldom heard a bass player and the drummer beating out the rhythm with such a verve and enthusiasm. If punk hadn't come along, they could have made it big with their classic rock ‘n’ roll and well-executed cover versions. Instead, they remained just another footnote in the history of forgotten bands.
In 2018 Austin, Texas, based experimental collective Thousand Foot Whale Claw released with Black Hole Party One of the most obscure and best albums of the year. An record consisting of six instrumental tracks, whose sound is almost impossible to pin down.
It is said that the band was influenced by late German krautrock. Their songs feature a dense sound and driving drums, inviting the guitars to engage in extended improvisations. Their psychedelic sound and built-in loops leave a lasting impression. Classifying TFWC as an instrumental psych band is only partially accurate, yet there are no suitable terms to fully capture the band’s broad scope.
A few weeks ago Swedish singer Lykke Li announced the release of her last album for next May. Li came to my ears 15 years ago with her single I Follow Rivers. It was a dark indie-pop track with a fine combination of pounding drums and her twee voice. The drums are still present but now she integrated Antonio Vivaldi and his 4 Seasons into her sound. The result is another fine indie-pop song. Let's enjoy her new sound as long as she continues to release new music.
Yesterday Dirt Bogarde, a DJ and producer from the midlands, released a new song. I followed him since a couple of years because he released some outstanding dark Balearic songs. Now he's back with a powerful chugging song. Faster than before but still with superb cosmic adventures.
Last week I finished my series about songs with whistling in it. In the meantime, I’ve prepared a new series, but I’ve postponed it again for now, because it occurred to me once more that The Clash also used a harmonica in their songs from time to time.
The harmonica is commonly associated with traditional blues and folk music. Research has shown that there are countless songs across a wide range of genres that wouldn’t be the same without the harmonica. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be featuring some of these songs here.
Let's start with a movie soundtrack from Once upon a time in the west, the legendary Spaghetti Western by Sergio Leone. As is so often the case, Ennio Morricone was responsible for the soundtrack, and once again he managed to score a film scene with music that is instantly recognizable. Even in the closing scene featuring the final duel, the music builds tension, orchestrates it, and then rises only to return to its starting point. Rarely has a scene been accompanied by such a long and perfectly suited musical score.
As mentioned earlier, The Clash’s Train In Vain was the inspiration for this series. Train in Vain isn’t the first song about lost love on London Calling—or, to be precise, not even the first song about the loss of one of the Slits on London Calling—but it is the most open and direct. By the time the album was being made, The Clash had already decided to ignore many of punk’s commandments, but breaking the commandment “Thou shalt not sing obvious, heart-wrenching love songs” was their boldest and most defiant move yet. Thanks to Mick Jones for that.
Another song that immediately came to mind in this context is “I Wanna Take You Higher” by Sly and the Family Stone. Released in 1969, I discovered it when I was fifteen, after a friend played me a record that belonged to his older brother. A bluesy guitar riff opens the song, and the longer it goes on, the faster the tempo gets. Sly Stone sings his heart out. From that moment on, it was clear to me what psychedelic soul and funk could be.
This series aims to highlight bands that have been around for years and take a closer look at their early days. This time we go for Yo La Tengo, an indie band formed in 1982 in Hoboken, New Jersey by Ira Kaplan and his wife Georgia Hubley. The couple are huge baseball fans and so they took the phrase 'I've got it' from a midfielder that he will get the ball. Ever since a player shouted that and bumped into his teammate—who didn’t speak English—and had to learn it in Spanish, it’s become a baseball anecdote.
From the very beginning, Yo La Tengo were hard to pin down musically, as they had a very broad musical range. Their influences span from jangly guitar rock to noise to the raw, raw sound of the Velvet Underground. But cover songs are also a regular part of their repertoire.
Since their debut album *Ride The Tiger*, they have rarely achieved commercial success, even though they have released many excellent albums over the past 40 years. I've seen them twice live in the 90's and every concert was fantastic. Rarely have I heard such a wide variety of different influences on a debut album that is, in principle, composed solely of classical instruments—influences that have lost none of their appeal even today.
Last week WarChild Records, a British benefit NGO, Help(2), their second charity album that supports children in war zones. The first “Help” compilation, released in 1995 in the wake of the civil war in the former Yugoslavia, raised approximately 1.25 million pounds for the children.
Once again, this album features well-known artists who have recorded their own songs or cover versions for this project. Since this is a social project, I will refrain from providing a detailed review of the individual tracks.
For this irregular series on cover versions, I’ve chosen Fontaines D.C.’s version of a song by Sinéad O’Connor (who also appeared on the first compilation with an excellent version of “Ode to Billy Joe”).
This gives me a brief glimpse into the music of the original artist. About Sinéad O’Connor—the outcast, the troubled soul, the unloved one, the martyr. Part of her fascination lies in her constant stumbles, her failures, her tendency to rub people the wrong way, and her embarrassing moments. For me, their first two albums were highlights of the 1980's, while the subsequent albums, unfortunately, did not achieve the commercial success they deserved. Unfortunately, I miss her wonderful voice.
You could hear what happens when Steve Davis, a six-time former world snooker champion, and Kavus Torabi, a member of the prog rock band Gong, join forces on The Utopia Strong’s 2019 debut album. Nothing more and nothing less than an album featuring songs rooted in krautrock and brimming with modular improvisations.
The centerpiece of the album, however, is the 10-minute track Brainsurgeons 3, which builds on a simple techno beat and minimal bass, featuring a crescendo of tambourines, bagpipes, and what sounds like a soprano saxophone, inviting listeners on a journey into space. This is what it might sound like when prog rock and electronic music meet in a recording studio.
I’m back in the blogsphere after taking a short break. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been feeling a bit listless and lacked the inspiration to write anything worthwhile. Whether that’s because I’m starting to feel the effects of spring fatigue as I get older, I’ll leave that open to interpretation.
Anyway, a new pop song by Meek got me back on the track. "I jumped up on the bar and started lip-syncing along… everyone in the bar was screaming, ‚I’m so fucking fabulous" is the song’s anthemic core, which transforms heartbreak, therapy, and financial worries into a self-deprecating statement.
The friendly folks at Austrian radio station fm4 described the song as follows: “Fabulous” is a self-empowerment anthem that blends glam rock and pop opera. In the verses, Meek laments the pitfalls of everyday life and the pain of unrequited love. Deep in her heart, however, she feels: “I am fucking fabulous!” The catchphrase, initially delivered on the back burner, becomes a beacon halfway through the song. The driving force behind it is a guitar riff inspired by the rock band Queen and their singer Freddie Mercury. Added to this is a Bohemian Rhapsody-style stereo effect during the chorus.
There’s nothing more to add to that, except that we’re going to be hearing the phrase “I am fucking fabulous” even more often.
