kids are louder than mogwai

I haven't posted in a while because I'm exiled from my long nights in front of the computer. Apart from that reason, a good one, I can also say that lately I hardly listen to any music, I'm busy all the time and when I'm not, I just collapse in bed. I don't have much to tell, unless I write about the only music I get to listen these days, things like: "blue, red, one-two, red, blue..." but assuming you're not interested in that, I'll just try to write a few lines today.

We often talk about music and what music makes us feel. We know that sometimes we are not in the mood for certain bands, so we prefer to listen to another. It's again the famous bidirectional thing, if music makes us feel that way or we listen to that because we're feeling it. Whatever the answer, the choice is influenced by our state of mind and I guess we all have our special moods music. I personally have my João Gilberto mood -if I take that record it's plain to see that something is wrong- my Joy Division mood or some songs you like listening to when you feel happy or something similar. But now I think of something else to take into account: where. A while ago I was stressed and tired, after a long day my head and ears had put up the loudest and more annoying noises and just wanted to forget everything and relax my mind. I laid in bed with the headphones on and closed my eyes. And I tried to leave that room at the same time I entered in the music. That's a good technique, quite common too -we all do that sometimes- but for me, it had been ages since the last time. It was great, it was different. I don't have many records here, but the idea worked anyway. Some Conor whines in between. I don't know where you listen to music, probably on the computer. I don't know if where and how influences you somehow. I never wanted to listen to music on the computer and sometimes I don't like it because I'm more concentrated on that little msn window I'm waiting to see open, but on the other hand, I've got now " when you are on msn and you are waiting for those little windows to pop up music" and Jens Lekman is also my favourite music on the computer and I got to enjoy the art of mp3.

I think it's not the same being alone. I'm usually alone and when I've tried to play a record for someone, they don't seem enjoy. Probably they are too scared to say they don't like it when I'm saying "listen to this, it's great!" or maybe they really need to be alone to appreciate it. It never works, if you want someone to listen to your favourite album, lend it to them and give them time. After a while they'll probably tell you it's crap anyway. Some people prefer loud music or not that loud or music to do stuff to, it just depends. For me, it's certainly not the same. Lots of people love music when they're driving too and I guess I can tell you about this soon.

Don't you have enough records to fill up a room to the extent of having to sleep with your feet outside? Two good labels like Shelflife and Elefant have sales!. Elefant has these offers a bit more often, but Shelflife is selling albums for 1$.

come fly with me

I have finally made up my mind about my holidays in January, so I thought I'd celebrate it with a post about planes.

It's not big news that I love planes/airports but what about planes in music? There are many songs about flying, but not many by bands I like. Teenage Fanclub are not experts on writing witty lyrics (but writing great tunes), however they have a song called "Fear of Flying" where they say "don't always look for comfort in a song". Indeed, a sentence to think about. "This is your one-way ticket so don't fuck it up, your flight is boarding and you're running out of luck". Lyrics that probably have nothing to do with travelling on a plane. The songs you may find about "flying" are not exactly about the physical action of travelling on a plane from point A to B. I wonder, how many airlines have you flew with? 12 for me.

When we have to fly I guess we have those who are excited about it and those who are dead scared. I've read that the odds of dying on a plane crash are 1 in 20,000. Interesting are the figures for intentional self-harm, 1 in 121. I reckon this doesn't help someone who have (ir)rational fear. Pavement sing "Hit the plane down", Divine Comedy "Tonight, we fly" or Neutral Milk Hotel "In the aeroplane over the sea". I still haven't found a song, probably by a Spanish electropunk band singing about Iberia, but I enjoy Blueboy's "Air France" and the idea of "leaving the world behind". Cooper (Spanish band on Elefant) have a single called "747". And dont' forget Sinatra singing "come fly with me, let's fly let's fly away"!.

The first song in "I'm wide awake, it's morning" starts with a story about a plane crash. From the very first moment, I hold those words as mine, syllable by syllable until I imagined my own version of the story and gave them the meaning I wanted. Today I've seen the new video for the song and I was horrified. Because now I can actually see the girl and the man, and I can also be appalled to see how everybody on a plane that is about to crash starts to sing and make out. Oh well, I don't know what I would do in such situation, but I don't seem to like the video too much. Am I too sensitive or is it a bit disturbing?

I guess it's the same as when you read a good book and you understand what you want to understand and then you see a bad telefilm on Sunday afternoon right after the news, and that is not what you wanted it to be. I know I'm exaggerating, okay. Some people ask why on earth is Avril Lavigne on the video or again what would you do if you were on a plane that was crashing and everyone around you started singing, drinking and kissing?.

I don't want to crash, I want to kiss Heathrow's carpet.

something vague

I didn't expect to write this post so early but hey, the sooner, the better!

If we really stick to the blog's name I have my own personal king of all soundracks, and it's not going to be a happy one. I know he is a jerk asshole genius, or at least to my ears, because there's not anybody in the whole world who can sing as he does and write such lyrics as well. Even though I don't want to add myself to the increasing number of fans who now have started a war against new-fans (as in many bands, we have the old and new school and with Bright Eyes new fans we usually mean teenagers shouting at concerts and filling their livejournals up with Conor-I-love-you icons) I of course prefer earlier albums. And for tonight, I couldn't choose anything but "Fevers and Mirrors". Having to choose a song from that album is as stupid as choosing who do you love most in your family. You may get on better with one but all of them as a whole are your family afterall.

Not my intention to write any review of the album, I just would say that this album I am listening to right now starts with a little audio clip when you hear a little boy (Mexican) reading a lovely storybook with Conor's help, then mentions the key word "fever" and a sea of pianos and waves of chords. Next, a song about the passing of time "once the page of a calendar is turned, it's not more", singing for a lost love and wondering about the "other" in "does he kiss your eyelids in the morning?", calling someone in a very pathetic -and familiar- way: "I settled for a telephone and sang into your machine, 'you are my sunshine, my only sunshine'" to pass to the brilliant "Something Vague" which is more about loneliness, routine, pain, sadness and dreams. And "Arienette" about everything, about what I'm looking for, oh stay with me Arienette. More about pills to balance our brains, about lies and irony: "our love would never lie, well, hah hah hah". Self-loathing, funerals and disappearing into sea. "Hold your sadness like a puppet, keep putting on the play", then a fake interview to Conor, and a song to 'pass the time' to end. It amazes me the whole references and images of the album as a whole, it's brilliant, it's perfect. As perfect as being here so late at night thinking about you can be.

"The fragile keep secrets, gathered in pockets and they'll sell them for nothing, a cheap watch or locket, that kind of gold washes off".

how do you kill your heart?

I'm a panda on wheels. After driving alone, next step is driving, not be scared and listen to small indie bands at the same time.

You may not believe me when I say that Sweden is a great country, but we have good examples everyday. This band is not exactly a "today" band though. Red Sleeping Beauty were four people who wrote simple pop songs, with boy/girl voices blending so well, and a sound much inspired by Sarah/c86 style. As they website says, it was a band that existed between 1992-1997. The last record that we could enjoy was a singles compilation out on the Spanish label Siesta in 2000. Short but lovely discography with many contributions to different compilations all around the world. I guess it's classic indiepop and somehow they make me thing that simple is good. One of my favourite songs is "You're the kind". I always liked these type of lyrics in songs, like in a Bright Eyes one: "You are the reoccurring kind, you never really leave my mind". Probably because of my personal experience; but the Swedish sing: "you're the kind of boy, I used to fall in love with, you're the kind of boy, that always makes me smile, but what do you care? do you ever try to talk to me?". I love it because the chorus is a dialogue between both of them, singing one line each other and then the girl says "I'm the kind of girl, who doesn't dare to say much". Do we always fall for the same kind of people?.

It's a shame we don't have more of these genuine pop bands around, but not everything is lost. Niklas goes on with pop favourites Acid House Kings -along with Joakim from Starlet and Johan from Club 8 and The Legends in what it seems a nice, prolific and incestuous Swedish scene. They have a great and updated website you can check and lots of good songs you can listen to. Their last album (including karaoke) was "Sing along with Acid House Kings" out on, haha, of course, Labrador. They played at the Lemon Pop Festival in Spain in September, but until they don't create a .zip version of this country, that will always be too far from here. I think it's just an easier solution if I move to Göteborg.

baby, I'm bad news

Another week is gone. If I have to tell what I have been up to this week well, I don't have to so I won't. You can't read that.

But my week's song is clearly "Date with Ikea" by Pavement. Reasons? Who needs reasons when you've got Pavement?. This is clearly becoming again a personal blog, though it wasn't my intention. At least I have a crush and a soundtrack for it.

Unfortunately, if you have a look at my record collection, it's going to be a bit difficult to find many female singers. I guess there are not as many as guys and I'm not one of those who gets crazy with girls' voices. But of course, there are exceptions. I can think of a few, but today I want to talk mainly about two of them. First, it's the band Rilo Kiley. I love the album "More Adventurous" and couldn't stop listening to it the week I bought it (in Oldham St, sigh) on one of my typical Saturdays. They say the album is "a tribute to instability as a virtue" and full of irony and contradictions. I love the story in "Does he love you?" and of course the brilliant "It's a hit" and "Portions for foxes" ("There's blood in my mouth 'cause I've been biting my tongue all week" -oh, so true!), and the harmonica on the album title's track. I saw them supporting Bright Eyes on their UK tour, and I enjoyed the gig a lot. I think they're quite good playing live. I like Jenny, I wish I was like her now that my hair has grown long -though I will get it cut very soon because I can't stand long hair and I could never let it grow that much, though I like hers- though I don't like how she dresses!. But here you have an example of a good voice. When I saw them in March, just next to me I had a group of old folks. They had Rilo Kiley t-shirts and AAA passes. They kept singing and shouting and I was puzzled. I was curious to know what were they doing there (well, apart from seeing the gig) and then I knew they were family of the band, uncles and that. They were a happy bunch, I can tell you. That concert -this band and the main act, of course- was amazing though the previous days were awful. Again, another proof that sometimes, music can heal. Once I was there, it was worth waiting, just to see them all and hear Conor's voice. Oh yes.

It's interesting to read that Jenny Lewis is going to release her first solo album in January next year to celebrate her 30th birthday. The record has a name, "Rabbit Fur Coat" (coming out on Team Love Records, Oberst's own label) and she's going to have Ben Gibbard and Conor singing on it. Now that I'm really into videos, you can watch a few here in this great site about the band.

Also in January, we will have a comeback. I can't write a post about female voices without mentioning Chan Marshall aka Cat Power and the good news are that she is back with a new record. You can have a first listening to the single "The Greatest" on Matador site.

And now to talk about the next artist, Hello Saferide, we move to lovely Sweden. It's been for a while in different indie blogs, especially those that talk about Swedish music, and as you can download a couple of songs off the website, you can try and decide if you like her voice. Her name is Annika Norlin and she writes a blog. I particularly fell for "Highschool stalker", a song about a teenage crush.

"And I was searching for your sweet name
Cause you never left my mind
I've been on the Altavista,
I went twice on the Yahoo
And everywhere I go,
there is always a clue,
always something about you
that may help me get my hands on you"

It's just a simple song but I never get tired of listening to new stuff from Sweden. They are only 9 million and how many bands do I like from there?.

(you are) nowhere

In music, I don't know if we should look forward or backwards.

In a night like this, when I just decided to forget about all my problems, doubts and plans (many of them involving low-cost airlines) I have had a nice conversation with a friend that made me realise that probably, what I'm looking for is closer than I may have thought. He asked me when everything started and that's always a difficult question to answer. I can vaguely say that in 1992 I listened to The Cure "Wish" album at a school friend's house -we listened to her sister's records when she was away- and that band, along with The Housemartins were my favourite back then. I still think "High" is a great song, and who doesn't like "Friday, I'm in love"? Who has not fallen in love on a Friday after school?. I could have said that I learnt the days of the week in English with that song...though it's not true.

At the same time of my story, he saved money for a while before going to Madrid, it was 24th October 1992. And he went to see his favourite band, the band that took his breath with their album "Nowhere" (released in October 1990). The whole experience was, as he would certainly say, bizarre. He got to see Andy Bell -oh yes, we like Andy- with his then-girlfriend Idha in the queue for the concert. The concert was really a small festival with Manic Street Preachers (still with Richey!), EMF and The Farm on the line-up. They played songs from both albums "Nowhere" and "Going Blank Again" -their only great albums afterall- and ended with "Drive Blind". It must have been great, those moments of your life that you will never forget. Even though the magic of the music came hand in hand with sinking friendships and people who didn't keep their promises -at that time, there was a fanzine called "Soy tan feliz, que me cortaría las venas", a brilliant name taken from "I'm so happy, I could slit my wrists", lyrics by the Scottish band, Close Lobsters. I am curious about the scene in Spain back then, and those fans trying to get records from the UK, now that we take the internet for granted. And you see your music heroes and you argue with people you care, and it's hard to know what is more important. I would like to have his original Ride vynil records, I probably don't know anyone who love them so much.

I first listened to Ride many years after that, I have to admit. Not without a lack of imprint on me and still today moving me as before, in the similar mood as the rest of so-called shoegaze bands (but that's another story, another post).

And there you have Andy playing in a band like Oasis, quite far from seagulls, polar bears and mouse traps; married to a Swedish, and spending his time between London and Sweden. Oh well, he is not stupid.

When did everything start for you?

the hymn for darren

I wasn't supposed to write about this tonight.

There is not much I can say now about Hefner, one of my favourite bands ever. And now that we are orphans -Orphan Songs was an album released only in Spain in 1999, though the songs were not new- we have to enjoy Darren's little gems on his solo career. This year, he released an EP on Acuarela Records -again a Spanish label- named Cortinaland, with 5 songs; and also a 4 track 7" EP under the name of Caravan Songs. You can read about the songs and listen to some of them on the website, and above all, there are videos. The video for Caravan Song was filmed during his stay in a caravan park in North East England. I think it's lovely -not to miss the shower part- and definitely a must to download. "Isn't it good to be free, but no one knows what freedom means". The other video is the song Crissy M (Cortinaland EP) where he even introduces his dog.

In August, he recorded a BBC One Music Session that you can listen to here. As he says in the introduction, it's the first time he plays a Radio 1 session as a solo artist, now playing ukelele, guitar and piano while his friend Dave plays banjo.

If you still want more lo-fi action, Darren recorded three songs for an American radio in June this year, with the peculiarity that he sang them over the phone. It's online and waiting for you. He sings a new one, "Everything is wrong all the time", "Gabriel in the airport" (The French) and "Greedy Ugly People".

As I said earlier, there is not point in writing here what Darren has made so far, because I think his music is brilliant. Hefner albums are my favourite albums of all time, I love the music, the lyrics and the artwork. I'm probably going to mention them again here. What I hope is that he keeps on writing songs like these. And having that special relationship with Spain (and mentioning Vigo on his tour stories on the website).

answering machine music

We all can be indie lo-fi electro-stars.

Sometimes, bad days end up being strange nights when you find yourself laughing and/or crying with a simple song. And that's why I am here.

There is a band that describes itself perfectly only with its name. Casiotone for the painfully alone is really the work of Owen Ashworth, an American who decided that it was better to write music than following his film studies as long as he could tell stories. He has released 3 albums so far on the German label Tomlab and these days he is touring the US. Honestly, I wouldn't know how to recommend his songs. The music is reduced to cheap casiotone notes, yet the result is more than simple. I guess there are many ways of listening to it and only depending on which one you choose, that would make a difference. Songs are recorded on answering machines and 4-tracks and the lyrics are witty and funny and moving. The homemade sound describes common situations that all (even the not-painfully-alone) can feel related to. Stories of tours, phone calls, miles, secret crushes, old friends, talking to strangers in shops -like me in Malmö, but I needed that information, I swear, haha- people leaving on buses, trains and planes. Maybe it's "avant-gard enough" and we shouldn't take it too seriously and just enjoy it.

My favourite songs are "Jeane, if you're ever in Portland": "We sigh when we're on the phone but the voice in my ear says it wouldn't be the same if you moved here"; "Oh Illinois": "I'm afraid of what we might start to say and I don't want to start missing you again". "I should have kissed you when I had the chance", "It wasn't the same somehow" and "Tonight was a disaster". I always liked long song titles and he offers me "A normal suburban lifestyle is a near impossibility once you've fallen in love with an international spy".

His last releases are a CD with the first two albums, an EP/7" called Young Shields and a split 7" with Fox Pause.

We all had a Casio(tone) when we were kids. Don't tell me you didn't. Owen has 23 keyboards, being the casiotone mt 100, mt 46 and mt 520 the ones he uses.

This is the Casio VL-Tone, the one I had. Apparently, it was only a calculator with an attached synth, very simple. This is probably the cheapest one and quite small too. But don't let cheap old-fashioned technology stop you!. Go and undust yours, he plays keyboards because he simply doesn't know how to play guitar. Maybe you can do the same, we all could be indie lo-fi stars. In fact, I seriously doubt it. It takes a bit more than that.


mp3: Casiotone for the painfully alone - Jeane if you're ever in Portland