Japanese Breakfast - Live ACL 2018-10-06

Today's entry is Japanese Breakfast (aka Michelle Zauner) which comes via a recent recommendation from Terry, which he described as a "sort of a cross of Bjork and 10,000 Maniacs".  She/they are coming to the Norva May 2, 2019; unfortunately I'll probably be out of town that day otherwise I'd make a point of catching this show. 

Terry's description is pretty accurate, with a strong, bright guitar sound that also reminds me a bit of "Damon and Naomi with Ghost".  The concert video he shared with me is from the Austin City Limits Festival, Oct. 6, 2018.

The Interrupters - "She's Kerosene" (spotlight)

Today on 96X I heard the DJ talking about Ska, explicitly mentioning her fondness for The Specials and The Selecter.  After accusing 96X of being less alternative than they used to be, the mention of those two bands got my attention.  The DJ then described The Interrupters as carrying on that tradition, and proceeded to play "She's Kerosene".

And while the 90s had a Ska revival, The Interrupters appear to be more indebted in sound and aesthetic to 2 Tone Records of the late 70s / early 80s, which gave us The Specials, The Selecter, Madness, The English Beat, etc. 

The Interrupters have been active since 2011, and "She's Kerosene" is from their 2018 LP "Fight the Good Fight". Billboard has a nice interview about their "breakout hit", two days before they were featured on the Jimmy Kimmel show.  Sounds like another overnight success, 7+ years in the making...

Other tracks on their Youtube Channel make it clear the debt Aimee Interrupter owes to both Joan Jett and Joe Strummer, but I'll feature "She's Kerosene" here since 96X was kind enough feature a song that fits my definition of alternative: 80s alternative music, with updated production... 

"She's Kerosene": official video, live on Jimmy Kimmel 2018-07-27

Prince - "I Would Die 4 U" (spotlight)

Super Bowl LII has come and gone and it was quite a good game, especially since I did not care who won.  Justin Timberlake was the halftime show, and reviews appeared to be mixed (e.g., "This is how Justin Timberlake lost the Super Bowl" vs. "Halftime Review: Justin Timberlake Emerges Fumble-Free After Bad Pre-Game PR").  I'm ambivalent about Justin Timberlake: he's funny on SNL, and he brought sexy back and for that I'm grateful, but otherwise I don't care that much; his performance seemed fine to me but I had set the bar pretty low.

For me, the truly interesting part of the halftime show was JT's tribute to Prince (presumably because the Super Bowl was in Minneapolis?) and the controversy leading up to the event.  Apparently the plan was to "recreate" Prince via a hologram (similar to that used for Maria Callas and Roy Orbison), a technique that Prince had previously called "demonic".  The hologram idea was eventually scrapped courtesy of Sheila E.'s advice, and instead we were treated to Prince singing ""I Would Die 4 U" via old Purple Rain* footage projected on what looked like a giant bed sheet.  Apparently that still upset some Prince fans; I can only assume they destroyed their DVDs (VHSes?) of "Purple Rain" on April 21, 2016.

Prince - "I Would Die 4 U" 




* Ok, technically it was footage from both "Purple Rain" and "Prince and the Revolution Live!", but while you've likely seen "Purple Rain" a dozen or more times, have you actually seen the latter concert film?