It's Friday afternoon and in just a few short hours I'll be cutting out of work early (admittedly, this early departure really just has to do with doing more work, only from outside of my cubicle), but until then, I thought I'd pass the time with a brief analysis of what I've been listening to lately.
I'm always interested in the ways we present ourselves vs. the ways we're actually, privately living. The music I write about here is a public expression of what I've been listening to, thinking about, seeing, etc., but the "private" side of things (all the things I listen to and don't write about here) is usually a totally different story.
So, here are my top ten artists this week according to my last.fm account:
1. Free Loan Investments Is their better springtime music than Free Loan Investments? Not today, there isn't. Their cover of "Rush Hour" from Shelflife's You're Still Young at Heart comp is making my heart flutter and my head spin.
2 & 3. Delta Dart and Mary Timony are tied for second place. I woke up in a Delta Dart kind of mood this morning and listened to their albums Fight or Flight and Lone Star. I've been really into Mary Timony's album The Golden Dove lately, especially the song "Blood Tree." I mentioned this on twitter and my friend Brittany said that Mary Timony is a witch who enchants all of her tunes, which is way better than Drew's claim that Mary Timony is a watered-down Sonic Youth ripoff.
4. Best Coast I'm still riding the high of seeing Best Coast in Oberlin a few weeks ago (review here) and have been listening to their tour CD-R & other tracks a ton (they would probably actually be number one for this week if last.fm had tracked the amount of times I streamed their new song.)
5. Mirah I don't know why, but this week I was in the mood to listen to Advisory Committee (I think this was probably inspired by the recently announced Thao and Mirah tour) & I'm always in the mood to listen to Mirah b-sides and compilation tracks ("Tumwater Falls" is the perfect springtime song.)
6. Pearl Harbor I just found out about Pearl Harbor this week from my friend April and wrote about their lazy California pop jams yesterday. This morning I ordered the repress of their Something About the Chaparral 12".
7. Little Red Car Wreck I wrote about Little Red Car Wreck way back when. Their album Motor Like A Mother is one of my mainstays and has been for something like 10 years now.
8. Allo Darlin' Are all of you too good for that free Allo Darlin' 7"? Hardly anyone has commented on that entry! You have until midnight (EST) on Sunday. Anyway, I've been really into some of the new Allo Darlin' tracks (especially "Dreaming" and "My Heart is a Drummer") and that is duly reflected in my last.fm stats.
9. Churchbuilder Churchbuilder is another band that I wrote about a long time ago. Akron based pop with dreamy synths and songs about Flannery O'Conor and bad northeastern Ohio weather.
10. The Lemonheads I was in a mopey mood on Monday morning and started my work week off by listening to the Lemonheads' album Car Button Cloth -- it's the perfect sad springtime record, especially with songs like "Hospital" and "The Outdoor Life."
Pearl Harbor, "Sunburn" (DOWNLOAD)
Pearl Harbor, "California Shakedown" (DOWNLOAD)
UPDATE
I am just going to start lurking April for all of my new music. This morning she introduced me to Pearl Harbor, an LA duo who write and perform some seriously gorgeous shimmering pop songs that make me think of the following (in no particular order): Galaxie 500, unicorns, costume jewelry, roller skates, tv shows set in imaginary high schools in California, and the opening sequence of the Less Than Zero movie. Pearl Harbor makes beautiful, lush tunes and it's honestly difficult to stop myself from just writing things like: "lush, atmospheric, dreamy, etc." over and over and over.
What's especially interesting is that normally I am not interested in anything "lush, atmospheric, dreamy, etc." In fact, normally I think that kind of stuff is boring and I take pains to avoid it (with a few rare exceptions -- I guess up until now there was (aside from Galaxie 500) actually only one exception, Panda Bear's Person Pitch.) Just yesterday Drew and I were in the car and I was talking about how much I hate soundscapes, if that gives you any idea of what I usually don't like in a song.
Anyway, if Pearl Harbor can get me listening to the kind of stuff I normally ACTIVELY DISCUSS DISLIKING, I think it's safe to assume that they are good at what they do.
They currently have two releases to their name: There's a debut 12" Something About the Chaparrals on Mexican Summer (view it here). I am admittedly not sure of what's going on with this -- the first press is sold out, I've heard there's a repress on turquoise vinyl (which the Mexican Summer site seems to suggest is sold out -- BUT all over the internet it's listed as having a May release date and less than 24 hours ago Pearl Harbor posted about it on Twitter in a way that suggested it should be readily available... Perhaps weirdest of all: you seem to be able to preorder it from Best Buy. I am not entirely sure what that's all about. Maybe it's one of those "sold out at the label, still available through distros" situations?)
There's also the Slivers of You 7" available from Japanese mail order label Big Love (the link takes you to and English-language ordering page.) It sounds like Pearl Harbor will have a few of these to sell on their upcoming tour with Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti and Magic Kids (you can see tour dates on their MySpace.)
The two songs I've uploaded with this post are "Sunburn" (the first track off the 12") and "California Shakedown" (the b-side from the 7".) It's a real shame that The OC is no longer on the air, because this song would work seriously well with a California teens driving down the 101 montage. I can seriously see Summer Roberts' hair blowing in the wind when I listen to this. "California Shakedown" is a little darker -- a little more Sweet Valley High Elizabeth Wakefield remembers that time she was kidnapped and kept under the floor of a burning building. OK, maybe not that dark. It's probably a little more Jessica Wakefield remembers that time she almost let Bruce Patman take off her bikini top and thinks to herself, "I thought I knew everything back then." Which is, when you think about, still pretty dark.
So, there you have it. Pearl Harbor: music for girls who remember when they thought they knew everything.
Pearl Harbor on blogger
Pearl Harbor on twitter
Pearl Harbor on facebook
Pearl Harbor on MySpace
Order the Slivers of You 7" here
Pearl Harbor, "Sunburn" (DOWNLOAD)
Pearl Harbor, "California Shakedown" (DOWNLOAD)
Black Iris is streaming a new Best Coast song, "Our Deal," from her forthcoming solo album. You can listen to it here.
I wish I had an arbitrary rating system that I used for this sort of thing, because I would happily give this "5 out of 5 cats" or rank it on par with "The OC season one" (versus, of course, later seasons of The OC.)
What I am trying to say here is: listen to this song. I have been for the last half hour. It's a gorgeous, lazy, mournful pop song. I'm beginning to think that Best Coast writes those types of songs better than almost anyone else.
I ran the random number generator this morning (5/3/10) and the winner is reggaechicken! I sent you a message via tumblr, but in case you see it here first, send me an e-mail with your mailing address so that I can send you your 7"!
I didn't anticipate having another item to give away so soon, but I've ended up with another copy of the Allo Darlin' The Polaroid Song 7" (b/w the lovely "Will You Spend New Year's With Me?") and what am I going to do with two? Raffle one off, obviously.
So, here's the deal: if you'd like to have an Allo Darlin' 7" of your very own, leave a comment by midnight on Sunday, May 2nd (EST) with one of your favorite summer jams and you're in the running.
If you're the kind of person who likes to have an edge in these sorts of things, you can link to Side Ponytail from elsewhere on the internet (and comment here or e-mail me at sideponytail@riseup.net to let me know!) and I'll give you 2 extra numbers when I run the random number generator on Monday morning. This is, obviously, not mandatory.
The previous giveaway was restricted to US residents... This one is not! So feel free to enter if you live abroad.
For those of you who might not be familiar with Allo Darlin', I've written about them on SP several times. They had my top single of 2009 with "Henry Rollins Don't Dance" and I am eagerly, eagerly awaiting their upcoming full length on Fortuna Pop (due in June -- but if you're lucky enough to catch them live, they're already selling it at shows.)
Allo Darlin' will be playing at the NYC Popfest (wish I could be there!) and has a lovely website with more information and some free downloads.
& here's a video for "The Polaroid Song":
I'm certainly blogging away this afternoon!
I'm super stoked to say that Mirah (who is, in case you haven't picked up on it by now, basically my favorite musician in the entire world) is hitting the road with Thao Nguyen. They'll be touring this summer as Thao and Mirah with The Most of All and I couldn't be more exuberant. They're not going to be hitting Ohio on this tour, but they're Detroit date falls on a Saturday, so I'll likely be making the trip up to Michigan.
I've got to say that I'm a little bummed that they'll be closing their tour at the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival. There's a good multi-part FAQ right here about MWMF's identity a space for "womyn born womyn" & what this policy means for the trans community. (The FAQ is divided over several pages & includes some good info, I suggest taking a look at it if you're not familiar with the MWMF.)
Dates are as follows:
Jun 9, 2010 - Albuquerque, New Mexico
Launchpad - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 11, 2010 - Austin, Texis
The Mohawk - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 12, 2010 - Houston, Texis
Orange Show Center for Visionary Art - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 13, 2010 - Dallas, Texis
The Loft - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 15, 2010 - New Orleans, Louisiana
One Eyed Jack's - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 16, 2010 - Tallahassee, Florida
The Engine Room - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 18, 2010 - Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Local 506 - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 20, 2010 - Washington, DC
Black Cat - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 21, 2010 - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
First Unitarian Church - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 23, 2010 - Cambridge, Massachusetts
Middle East - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 24, 2010 - Brooklyn, New York
Music Hall of Williamsburg - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 25, 2010 - Montreal, Quebec
La Sala Rossa - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 26, 2010 - Toronto, Ontario
The Horseshoe - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 27, 2010 - Detroit, Michigan
Magic Stick - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jun 28, 2010 - Chicago, Illinois
Lincoln Hall - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jul 1, 2010 - Minneapolis, Minnesota
Cedar Cultural Center - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jul 5, 2010 - Denver, Colorado
Hi-Dive - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Jul 7, 2010 - Salt Lake City, Utah
Urban Lounge - w/ Thao with The Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with The Most of All)
Aug 7, 2010 - Hart, Michigan
Michigan Womyn's Music Festival - w/ Thao with the Get Down Stay Down (Thao and Mirah with the Most of All)
Grass Widow, "To Where" (DOWNLOAD)
I wanted to write about Grass Widow last week, but just didn't have the time (I had to go out of town for work and wasn't able to get a post together.) But, better late than never, right?
My friend April introduced me to Grass Widow early last week when she posted one of their songs on her Tumblr. I was instantly smitten! Grass Widow fits in so neatly with a lot of what I've been listening to lately: fuzzy, hazy, pop music with female vocals. "To Where," the first song off of their first full length LP is a perfect summer jam (sorry for all of the "summer jams" talk lately, but in the interest of full disclosure, I am probably going to be yammering on about summer jams until September, AT LEAST. Until then, it is summer jam season.)
"To Where" is a perfect first track for an album -- it sounds like it's overflowing with enthusiasm, it makes me want to get up and move around, it is all muddled voices and bright colors and fast guitars, like a sonic water color, which sounds really cheesy until you listen to the song and realize that "it sounds like a water color" is actually the PERFECT SIMILE and I am a rock critic GENIUS.
Grass Widow is currently on tour and they're playing up and down the general west coast area with some killer bands -- including Brilliant Colors and Mike Watt and the Missingmen. April planned on catching their Portland show yesterday night and I certainly hope she did so that I can live vicariously through her experiences.
Aside from their full length, Grass Widow also has an EP out on Captured Tracks -- which, according to the Captured Tracks website, is sold out. Good news, though, a few distros still have it. If you're in the US, you can order from InSound and if you're in the UK you can order from Soft Power Vinyl and Rough Trade. You can order the LP direct from the band via their website (see links below!)
Grass Widow's official website
Grass Widow on MySpace
Grass Widow, "To Where" (DOWNLOAD)
This past Saturday was the third annual Record Store Day, a highly anticipated event for Drew and something that I more or less enjoy. I had to work Saturday morning, but was able to meet Drew in the line to get into Music Saves, one of the independently owned stores on Waterloo Rd. near the Beachland. The line more than doubled in length while we were waiting and by the time we were done shopping and had checked out, there was still a decent line of people waiting to get into the store.
My haul is (mostly) pictured above & breaks down as follows:
- Dum Dum Girls/Male Bonding split 7"
- Thermals/Cribs split 7"
- Surfer Blood/Holiday Shores split 7"
- Built to Spill 7"
- Superchunk 7"
- Let's Wrestle/The Love Language split 7"
- Unusual Animals vol. 1 (Asthmatic Kitty split 7", free in my grab bag!)
- Music Saves loaded me up with additional free goodies including stickers, a Helper T-Cells CD, a Sufjan Stevens comic book, Cleveland postcards, & the center from a copy of the new Hold Steady album, which was pressed here in Cleveland (this will probably become a coaster)
- USED a copy of the Barbarians' "Moulty" 7" from the Blue Arrow (also on Waterloo)
- USED VIA MAILORDER The Softies' "Love Seat" 7", Best Coast "Make You Mine" 7", Skatterbrain's CD-R comp If You Like Everything, There's Nothing Left to Love!
The Blue Arrow and Music Saves put on a joint series of shows featuring local bands Prisoners (this was Drew's third show playing with them), The Muttering Retreats, Tastycakes, The Very Knees, and Cloud Nothings. I think I caught a little bit (or all) of everyone's sets (with the exception of the Muttering Retreats.) Cloud Nothings were a lot of fun (they played my favorite song of theirs & staple of this year's summer jams, "Can't Stay Awake") & so were Prisoners (who will be apparently playing a ton of shows in the coming months, so I guess I can look forward to Drew never moving his amplifier out of our living space.)
Maybe it's the Ladypalooza stuff going on over at Tiger Beatdown, but lately I feel as though I have been hyper conscious of the way my gender informs the experiences I have out and about in the "real world" as it relates to music. "Sexist Encounters with Music Snobs" have become an institution in my journal (dudes who work at Guitar Center who tell me, "If you just practice hard enough, even you could be in a band!," record store clerks who I assume that I basically exist as Drew's mobile record holder, people who ask me if I am a "groupie"), but I feel like lately I've been hyper aware of positioning myself as a female within record culture and wondering what that means in a larger context. This is all a very long way of saying that waiting in line on Record Store Day, I was subject to some conversations that totally helped me to understand why my girl friends don't want to go to the record store with me or go to shows or even talk about music in a way that is more meaningful than, "Oh yeah, I really like that song."
I found myself having a sort of on the street existential crisis because I became totally paranoid about whether or not I was one of Those Elitist Record People who talked about things like having rare Deerhunter singles (FULL DISCLOSURE: I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHO DEERHUNTER IS!) I heard a lot of people talking about their music blogs in ways that both made me both ashamed of having a music blog and proud of myself for never talking about it in real life (which is kind of weird, I mean, why should I be proud of myself for not sharing something?)
Ultimately, I have some mixed feelings about Record Store Day. I say it all the time, but community is one of the main things that drew me into an ongoing appreciation of music & while I love that Record Store Day, in many ways, helps to foster a sense of community by getting people to go out and support independently owned stores (& from what I hear, people in Cleveland showed a lot of support), I don't get a sense of community from listening to people brag about who has what (I mean, we might as well just get it out there, my ability to collect records is a direct product of my class privilege) or seeing people re-sell Record Store Day releases on eBay (Blur's ONE SIDED 7" is selling for upwards of $100 on the auction market -- over $100 for JUST ONE SONG).
All that said, I would more or less call Record Store Day 2010 a success.
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