All Around Al's World of Sound: Wolf 09
Back in third grade, my friend Al liked music and baseball. Al is still my friend, and he still likes music and baseball. He was a breakdancer in high school. I explored the idea, but I was an awfully awkward and lanky breaker. But in 1985 we could all agree on R.E.M. and The Smiths. High school. Unbelievable.
Music in 2008
January 10th, 2009 I took the last moon off, but I'm back for the New Year to spew more nonsense. I hope everyone had a nice holiday season. I got my first real heat bill for this winter a couple of weeks ago... whoa. Let's hope for a short winter.
2008 was somewhat of a slower year in music for me. Was it the recession? No, I think it just took me a while to warm up to the new stuff that was coming out throughout the year. But thinking back to the last twelve months, there has definitely been some good and interesting music put out there, from new bands/singers and old veterans alike. Here is a short list of songs from '08 that I enjoyed quite a bit:
No Age - Eraser
I've written about this one on a previous moon, so not much else to say about it.
The BPA - Toe Jam (ft. David Byrne & Dizzee Rascal)
Does anyone remember how good Talking Heads were? It's good to hear David Byrne again.
Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal
I'm still not sure if I like the entire Fleet Foxes disc, but I definitely dig this song.
The Walkmen - In The New Year
The vocals reminds me of Boy-era Bono with a little Roger Daltrey in the mix.
Bon Iver - Skinny Love
Much like the Fleet Foxes, I'm not quite sure if I'm sold on Bon Iver, but this song is pretty great.
TV On The Radio - Golden Age
The lead singer of TVOTR, Tunde Adebimpe, stars in the film Rachel Getting Married. In the movie he sings an a cappella version of Neil Young's Unknown Legend, which is fantastic. Good movie, by the way, although if you're not into watching stories about family dysfunction it may not be your cup of tea. Also, "Golden Age" is sung by TVOTR's other leader singer, Kyp Malone.
Q-Tip - Believe (ft. D'Angelo)
The Return of Q-Tip. The Renaissance is the best thing he's done since his days in A Tribe Called Quest.
Santogold - Unstoppable
Sort of hip-hop, but not quite. Sort of reggae, but not quite.
The Helio Sequence - Keep Your Eyes Ahead
This song was also written about on a previous moon, so you can look it up if you'd like.
Vampire Weekend - M79
Preppy rich kids make some pretty catchy music.
R.E.M. - Living Well Is The Best Revenge
R.E.M. muscle up. Its been written all over the place how they sound rejuvenated, and personally, I agree.
Jose Gonzalez - Down The Line
OK, so I cheated on this one since its from '07, but I'm sure you won't care too much. It's just a really good song that I wanted to include somewhere in this entry.
Bob Dylan - Most Of The Time
This version squashes the Oh Mercy version like a grape. Stripped of all of the echo-ey '80's production, this one sounds like archetypical Dylan: voice, acoustic guitar and harmonica, some great lyrics, and that's it. And I don't know if its Dylan's delivery, but the context of the song seems to have gone through a transformation. On the Oh Mercy version, Dylan sounds like he's longing or lamenting a lost love. However, in this version he sounds like he's persevering despite the loss. Nice trick.
So that's 2008 in a musical nutshell. Here's to 2009 and a brighter future for everyone.
Have a good evening.
BEAVER MOON 2008 FUNKY 4+1
HUNTER MOON 2008 Salami
HARVEST MOON 2008 Stuffed Up
STURGEON MOON 2008 Eraser
STRAWBERRY MOON 2008 PB & J
FLOWER MOON 2008 The Helicopter
PINK MOON 2008 Hooks
WORM MOON 2008 iPod and I
SNOW MOON 2008 All Around Al's World of Sound 101
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