Month: April 2012

Song of the Day

FORT ATLANTIC
No One Will Know

DOWNLOAD: No One Will Know

Fort Atlantic is Jon Black, and Jon Black is pretty Goddamned amazing. His musical style, lyrical phrasing and voice is eerily reminiscent of Jackson Browne, with a little bit of an upbeat Jeff Tweedy thing thrown in for some Indie cred. I was introduced to Mr. Black via my regular email blast from Noisetrade, one of the better sites I subscribe to for new music. Artists can upload an album, EP, single, or live recording to distribute it completely free (tipping gladly accepted and encouraged by yours truly). Fort Atlantic is set to release their first album May 29th, but to get you interested they’re offering a 5-song EP that is quite a revelation. The first time I listened to the anthemic ‘No One Will Know’, with its surging drumbeat and pleading harmonies, it raised the hairs on my neck…

I think I have made up my mind
I think there are places that we need to go just to find…

Black has spent the past three years in his DIY home studio working on the songs that make up his debut album. When he finished recording last November, he packed up the tapes and travelled to New York to have Grammy-winning producer Tom Schick (who coincidentally has spun the knobs for Tweedy and Wilco) handle the final mix. When they were done, Schick said…

“The songs on this record are instant classics. Jon has an impressive voice and crafts beautiful songs with many great twists and turns. I love this record”.

He was right…after listening to the five tracks on the EP you come away with a warm, comforting feeling…almost like you’ve known these songs your whole life. I love this record.

You must get this EP. Head over to Noisetrade for the free download…and if you like it like I know you will, throw him a tip! Then tell all of your friends. Then visit his facebook page and LIKE him…..you’re welcome!

Song of the Day

SARAH JAFFE
Glorified High

DOWNLOAD: Glorified High

Sarah Jaffe has come a long way since she was last on The List back in 2010 with ‘Clementine’. On her new album, The Body Wins, the folky rhythms and mournful lyrics from that first record have been replaced with fuzzy sampled percussive beats, electronic pianos, upbeat melodies and a much more pop-centric feel to her songwriting. Gone too is her earthy, slacker image that featured a mish-mosh of hoodies, plaid shirts and knit caps. Judging from the cover of The Body Wins where she sports a new razor-cut hairstyle and almost military-like fashion, I’d say Sarah has been put through the record company makeover machine. But if the marketing guys thought getting a haircut was necessary to get noticed, it must be working ‘cuz even Jon Pareles of The NY Times reviewed her album yesterday. For an indie artist, that’s kinda huge. And judging from what he wrote, I’d say we’re both fans of her new sound.

You can check out more of Sarah Jaffe on her website or head over to her facebook page and hit the LIKE button.

Song of the Day

HARPER SIMON
Wishes And Stars

DOWNLOAD: Wishes And Stars

No, you’re not listening to a long-lost Simon & Garfunkel single…this is Paul Simon’s son, Harper Simon, and if not for me clearing out some of the stuff taking up space on my DVR last night, I would probably have never heard this. It played as the credits rolled on the first episode of the new HBO series, ‘Girls’, and if you’ve seen the show (and you’re like me) then you probably can’t imagine a more perfect song to encapsulate the characters and themes…

Everyone seems so certain
Everyone knows who they are
Everyone’s got a mother and a father
They all seem so sure they’re going far
They all got more friends than they can use
Except me ‘cause I’m a fool…

The show, by the way, is excellent! Writer/Director/Creator/Voice-of-her-Generation Lena Dunham’s super-smart look at four twenty-something girls trying to make their way in the World is peppered with dialogue that flows like a hipster mash-up of a David Mamet play and a Whit Stillman movie. And is it coincidence or by clever design that Mamet’s daughter Zosia plays one of Dunham’s girlfriends and Stillman regular Chris Eigeman plays her boss? I dunno…just watch it!

But back to the song…which was chosen by the show’s music director Michael Penn…it’s off of Simon’s self-titled debut that features some serious bold-faced indie friends…Aaron Espinoza of Earlimart, Yuka Honda of Cibo Matto, Sean Lennon, Joan (As Police Woman) Wasser and the amazing violinist Petra Haden. Oh yeah, he also called upon Steve Nieve whose day job is Elvis Costello’s keyboardist in the Attractions, percussion superstar Steve Gadd and of course, his Dad. Finally, if all that talent wasn’t enough, he got Tom Rothrock to twiddle the knobs and mix the final product. How he Hell did I miss this album when it was released?!!

So your assignment is to watch ‘Girls’ on Sunday nights and check out more of Harper Simon at his website!

Song of the Day

THE MYNABIRDS
Generals

DOWNLOAD: Generals

Laura Burhenn and the Omaha-based Mynabirds are back with their second album, Generals, due out June 5th, and she’s giving away the title track…a percussion-heavy, anthemic foot-stomper that was good enough to get me out the the serious Song of the Day drought I’ve been in! In this song, Laura sounds kinda pissed off with the way a few politicians have been trying to step on the rights of hard-working girls out there lately…

Calling all my generals
My daughters, my revolutionaires
We’ve got strength in numbers
And they’re going to pay for it…

Word is Generals is a concept album that’s allowing her to exercise her political frustration and was named after the Richard Avedon photo “Generals of the Daughters of the American Revolution”, and she wants all you gals you strap on your ‘black boots’ and ‘war paint’ and don’t let anybody tell you that you don’t count…Amen! You can check out The Mynabirds on their website and for all you locals, they’ll be in New York June 22nd at The Mercury Lounge.

WTF is Wrong with Hasselblad?!!

Hot on the heels of last week’s announcement that Leica plans to market a camera directly at Hedge Fund Managers…the All-White, $32,000 M9-P…the guys at Hasselblad must have figured that the market for ridiculously overpriced (and stupid) cameras is probably gaining traction again, cuz in my email box this morning was an announcement heralding a new “dedicated online site for the H4D Ferrari Limited Edition”, where prospective idiots buyers can, “…put themselves behind the wheel and to have a virtual test drive of a model that will only ever be owned by 499 photographers worldwide…”

What. The. Fuck.

OK…..I’m figuring that since this tarted-up whore of an HD4-40 was announced back in 2010, the branding geniuses who hatched this debacle are probably still up to their necks in the majority of the 499 HD4’s they ruined by slapping some glossy red paint and a Prancing Horse Logo onto the thing, but now they’re thinking, if Leica can sell a $9000.00 camera for $32 Grand, then we sure as Hell can charge $10 Grand for a Pimp-My-Ride-Style paint job on a $20,000 camera! So they put up a couple of new pages on their website, send out some emails to ‘re-introduce’ us all to this truly special bit of fluff, and hope for the best…’cuz if they don’t sell all 499 of these white red elephants (499 x $30K = $15 million) then it’s their ass!!!

Now, to be fair, the H4D Ferrari Limited Edition does come in an exclusive hand-made, carbon-fibery looking, glass topped case…surely to mimic same feeling you get when gazing upon the 562 Horses beneath the glass engine cover on your Ferrari 458 Italia…and Dr. Larry Hansen, the Chairman and CEO of Hasselblad, even slips in a hand-signed personal ‘Welcome Letter’, and that undoubtedly will make you feel extra-special important…

But I have to wonder…will the H4D Ferrari Limited Edition share any of the other traits and foibles Ferrari owners have a love/hate relationship with?!! Like the constant and expensive need of regular tune-ups, and will parts for the Limited Edition be equally overpriced, befitting a camera of such vaulted status??? Or, like the Ferrari which will only run on the finest hi-test fuel money can buy, will this Limited Edition H4D only take photos of ‘special’ subjects?!! You wanna shoot Supermodels and Arab Sheiks, okie-dokie, but try to use the thing for a day of High School Senior photos and it’ll seize up like you put sugar in its tank!!!

But maybe I’m wrong…maybe just knowing you own something only 498 other morons cloud-dwellers will possess will push your photography to previously unknown heights of excellence! I dunno…but one thing is for sure…I really would like that fancy velvet marble bag to keep my camera in…