Damian Marley - "Welcome To Jamrock" (spotlight)

In this post, in my best James Burke impression, we'll go from Bob Marley to "My Fair Lady". 

Riding around in the car earlier this week, 96.1 played a song that I had never heard before.  It was crossover of dub/reggae/rap, but with a hard enough sound to warrant play on an alt rock station. After parking, I pulled out my iphone and discovered that it was Damian Marley's  "Welcome To Jamrock" ("Jamrock" being used as an umbrella term for reggae, dancehall, and other Jamaican musical genres).  Although I had never heard it before, I discovered that it came out in 2005 and its YouTube video had 25M+ views, so clearly it had been important somewhere, but just not on the local alt rock radio.  So why did 96.1 play it:  experimenting with their playlist?  recognition from Damian performing at the 2013 Grammys (even though this song was not featured)?

I'm not sure why they played it, but I liked it.  Sampling the 1984 Ini Kamoze song "World a Music (Out In The Streets They Call It Merther)", the lyrics (slang and Patois delivered in a thick accent) were all but undecipherable, but upon reading the meaning is clear: Jamaica is gripped with poverty, violence, and despair.  Damian is the son of Bob Marley, and whereas his father had a hopeful, spiritual message for Jamaica, the son's message is one of bleak, gritty realism, e.g.:

C'mon let's face it, a ghetto education's basic
And most ah de youths them waste it
And when dem waste it, that's when dem take the guns replace it
Then dem don't stand a chance at all

What made my belated discovery of "Welcome To Jamrock" more interesting is that it was only a few days after really discovering "Safe European Home" by The Clash.  I've written a lot about The Clash, but I (and most others I believe) have overlooked their 1978 sophomore LP "Give 'Em Enough Rope".  It's not a bad LP, but it doesn't really have any memorable singles and is overshadowed by their first LP (by virtue of being first) and their third, 1979's iconic "London Calling".  The first song on the LP is "Safe European Home", and it is arguably the best song on the LP.  But the lyrics are nearly as indecipherable as "Welcome To Jamrock", so only last week did I really sit down and study them.  I've mentioned before where The Clash spearheaded punk's interest in reggae, but "Safe European Home" is the story of their bad experiences on an early trip to Jamaica, the reality of which did not match the tourism image:

Wasn't I lucky n' wouldn't it be loverly?  
Send us all cards, an' have a laying in on a Sunday  
I was there for two weeks, so how come I never tell  
That natty dread drinks at the Sheraton hotel?  

Now they got the sun, an' they got the palm trees  
They got the weed, an' they got the taxis  
Whoa, the harder they come, n' the home of ol' bluebeat
Yes I'd stay an' be a tourist but I can't take the gun play     

So despite both "Welcome to Jamrock" and "Safe European Home" existing for quite some time, I somehow managed to "discover" them both in the space of a few days.  Apparently little has changed in Jamaica in the nearly 30 years between The Clash's initial visit and Damian's dirge. 

The connection to "My Fair Lady"?  Danette pointed out the sly "wouldn't it be loverly" reference in "Safe European Home", "loverly" reflecting Joe Strummer's adopted Cockney, blue-collar focus.   How many punk songs do you know that sneak in a Broadway reference?

In addition to the "My Fair Lady" reference, the last minute of "Safe European Home" also gives us a preview of a song to come: note the the "Rudie, Rudie, Rudie, ... Rudie Can't Fail" lyrics, which would become a song of its own on "London Calling" ("Rudie" = "Rude Boy").  

Damian Marley: "Welcome To Jamrock"

The Clash: "Safe European Home" (studio), "Safe European Home" (live from the 1980 "Rude Boy" film; note that Joe Strummer often improvised lyrics during live performances)

Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros: "Safe European Home"

Ini Kamoze: "World a Music (Out In The Streets They Call It Merther)"

Audrey Hepburn: "Wouldn't It Be Loverly"

Julie Andrews: "Wouldn't It Be Loverly"

Mariachi El Bronx - "Cell Mates" (spotlight)

Some things you just have to listen to...  "Cell Mates" is the single off the 2009 self-titled LP by Mariachi El Bronx.  The twist is, in a sense, there really is no band called Mariachi El Bronx -- it is just the mariachi alter-ego of the punk band The Bronx.  How does a punk band decide to do mariachi music?  Prolonged cultural exposure, not unlike the observation I made about Danette and myself with respect to hip hop in the review of "My Philosophy".  Quoting frontman Matt Caughthran:

"[the LP] was something that was a part of us that we didn't really realize. I mean, being from Los Angeles and, you know, growing up and surrounded by Mexican culture, it just kind of happened."

I'm not qualified to evaluate this song as mariachi music, but it sure is fun.  And the b-side of this single?  A mariachi cover of Prince's "I Would Die 4 U".  That's right: a punk band masquerading as a mariachi band, covering Prince.

Mariachi El Bronx: "Cell Mates", "I Would Die 4 U"

What do they normally sound like?  The Bronx: "Shitty Future", "False Alarm"

Beyonce - "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" (the song remains the same)

I seem to have a Super Bowl tradition going, so no reason to stop now...

Super Bowl XLVII had Beyonce for the halftime show, and by all accounts it was very successful.  Although I'm not really a Beyonce fan, it did seem like a high-energy show.  It was surprisingly short on guest appearances, so I'll have to do my first (and probably only) Beyonce post.

She performed several of her big hits including "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", which is probably her biggest hit, crossing over into many other genres.  You've heard it countless times before, but did you know that:

• the iconic dance routine is based on 1969's "Mexican Breakfast"?
• it is the basis of a SNL skit with Justin Timberlake?
• there are not one but two bluegrass versions?  The Cleverlys and The Pigs
• The Daily Show featured a mariachi version?
• it was slowed down by Sara Bareilles?
• just for Danette's benefit*, Liza Minnelli did a version?
• it was used as an example in an NPR piece about how video making has changed?

I find the last bit the most interesting: rather than the theatrical, complex arrangements of 1983's Thriller, which was meant to be viewed on a large screen TV, modern videos are optimized for smaller, mobile devices.  This means lots of flashing lights, centering framing, and facial close-ups.  The contrast with Michael Jackson is interesting, because it was his 1993 halftime show that launched the current practice of A-list performers.  Prior to that, you were more likely to see "Up With People" at halftime (seriously, look it up). 

Now that you've learned about how the viewing devices influence video making, take another look:

Beyonce: "Single Ladies"

Enjoy it because Super Bowl XLVIII might not have a halftime show (however, I'm betting they do).




* Aside from the obvious icon status, Danette completely doesn't get Liza Minnelli. 

Ass Ponys - "Little Bastard" (forgotten song)

Do you remember this one?  Danette swears she's never heard it before, but I'm certain it got a tiny bit of airplay when it came out in 1994.  "Little Bastard" was the single from the Ass Ponys's LP "Electric Rock Music".  Not a lot of airplay, mind you, but it obviously stuck with me enough to remember some nearly 20 years later.

Based in Ohio, I don't think the Ass Ponys ever made it big.  Vocalist Chuck Cleaver later formed Wussy, who I think I've heard of but their biggest accomplishment seems to be the undying admiration of veteran rock critic Robert Christgau, who is entranced by Chuck's stories of off-kilter Americana.  I've never seem him praise an entire discography like that before.

Anyway, back to "Little Bastard": this quirky, jangly, catchy song (& video) is a perfect mid-90s time capsule.  It makes me want to grow my goatee again.

"He said, `don't call me little bastard / call me snake...'" 

Ass Ponys: Little Bastard

This Mortal Coil - "Song to the Siren" (the song remains the same)

I've already given a short summary of the history and focus of This Moral Coil in my review of their initial 1983 EP "Sixteen Days/Gathering Dust".  Originally the B-side to the EP, "Song to the Siren" was so well-received that it became the A-side to the 7" single.  In part through use in commercials, "Song to the Siren" became a moderate hit (in relative terms, anyway) for This Mortal Coil. 

Originally written by folk singer Tim Buckley, my first exposure was the TMC verison.  But I've only recently discovered the many other versions of this song.  Here is an incomplete list in roughly chronological order:

Tim Buckley - 1968, studio 1970: Danette pointed out the original, folk version is midway between Pat Boone's and TMC's. 

Pat Boone - 1969: No, really.  A disturbingly bland, lifeless version. 

TMC - studio 1983,  live 1983: The canonical version; Elizabeth Fraser turns in an achingly beautiful rendition.

Damon & Naomi - 2001: The former Galaxie 500 members give a trademark slowcore version.

Sinead O'Connor - 2010: Clearly inspired by the TMC version.

Bryan Ferry - studio 2010, live 2010: This sounds exactly like you'd expect a Bryan Ferry version to sound like. 

Brendan Perry - live 2011: Perry is 1/2 of Dead Can Dance, who were a central figure in the 4AD / TMC sound.

School of Seven Bells - "Ghostory" (LP Review)

David Byrne has a TED talk about music in context: how music is shaped by the environment in which it is intended to be experienced.  Music intended for the outdoors, dive bars, concert halls, etc. are best experienced in those environments and do not necessarily translate well into other environments.

There is more to his argument and I encourage you to read it (his blog is always engaging on a variety of topics, only a few of which are about music), but I'll use context as the motivation for this review.  Less than a year ago I was driving in my car and listening to 96.1, pretty much the only local option for alternative music on the radio, not counting specific shows on public radio like "Out of the Box".   Now keep in mind that the definition of "alternative" is contextually dependent as well.  96.1 is a pretty good station, but they have to sell commercials like everybody else and the Hampton Roads market isn't that big, so there is a definite limit to just how "alternative" things get. 

So when I heard "Lafaye" (it was either that or "Love Play") from School of Seven Bells on the car radio, it caught my attention.  I fired up my iphone app to find out who it was and made a note of it for future exploration.  "Ghostory" is the third LP from the band, but somehow I had not heard of them.  The band has an interesting story: originally Benjamin Curtis and identical twins Claudia and Alejandra Deheza, "Ghostory" is their first LP without Claudia.  I did some reading and sampled some YouTube videos, and then added the LP to my next Amazon order. 

So here's the point about context: the threshold for "cool" and "alternative" is apparently much lower in my car radio than it is in my home collection.  "Ghostory" is not a bad LP, and there really aren't any bad songs.  But what sounded so engaging while driving around town is really just a by-the-numbers imitation Cocteau Twins, albeit with productions values updated by 20+ years.  I love the Cocteau Twins (and the whole 4AD sound) but if you have some of the more accessible Cocteau Twins LPs like "Heaven or Las Vegas", you're not going to hear anything new on "Ghostory".  It's all there: ethereal vocals, otherworldly soundscapes, the dreamy soundtrack for some yet-unmade film; the notable exception is that Alejandra does not convey the joy that Elizabeth Fraser brings to the Cocteau Twins.

Somehow, reviews by Pitchfork, Drowned in Sound, and Stereogum all miss the CT/4AD similarity. To me it could not be any more obvious than if they had named the LP "Remixed Ghosts of Heaven or Las Vegas".  One of the reviews points out that "Ghostory" is a concept LP about a woman named "Lafaye" and the "ghosts" in her life... screw it, I'm already bored.

Standout songs: "Love Play", "Lafaye", "Scavenger" (live, acoustic version). 

Other songs: most are available in this YouTube playlist.

Skip 'em songs: none.

Final score: 6/10.  With a nod to David Byrne, "Innovative in Michael's Car" != "Innovative in Michael's Home".  Suitable for background listening.

Cocteau Twins Bonus links: "Heaven or Las Vegas", "Frou Frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires", "I Wear Your Ring" -- see my point?

DJ Shadow - "The Less You Know, The Better" (LP review)

First, let's get this out of the way: at the risk of damning with faint praise, "The Less You Know, The Better" is much, much better than 2006's dreadful "The Outsider".  Second, owning easily a linear foot or more of his considerable discography, I'm no casual DJ Shadow fan.

OK, now I'll begin with a slight detour.  A while back we watched Kevin Smith's storytelling special "Too Fat For 40".  Paraphrasing from memory, Smith said something to the effect that classic films like "Clerks" (1994) and "Chasing Amy" (1997) were the kind of films the he could make in his early- and mid-20s, based on who he was and where he was but the successful, 40 year old Kevin Smith simply can't make those kinds of films again.

I can't help but compare Kevin Smith to Josh Davis, aka DJ Shadow.  Perhaps DJ Shadow simply can no longer make landmarks like 1996's "Endtroducing....." or 1994's "What Does Your Soul Look Like", both of which Davis also made in his early- and mid-20s.  DJ Shadow has stated many times that he wants to move on from "Endtroducing....." and not be stuck in that rut.  I get & respect that; however, it has just occurred to me that's he stuck in another rut, an anti-"Entroducing....." rut.  "The Less You Know, The Better" is simply "The Private Press", take 3*.

"The Private Press" is where Shadow introduced his current stripped-down, sparse sound.  It wasn't as dense, and incorporated fewer samples and instead focused on more subtle changes (not unlike Plastikman).  It worked on "The Private Press" (which I admit didn't fully make sense to me until it was paired with 2003's remix LP "The Private Repress"), in part because all the songs had a unified vision (which I can only describe using words like "clinical" or "antiseptic").  "The Outsider" continued that sound, but with an unfocused or unclear vision and too many guests, many of whom were -- let me check my desk reference, yes I can use this phrase -- "sucka MCs".

Fortunately there are no sucka MCs on TLYKTB.  But the lack of focus is still a problem; it is almost as if Shadow approached this LP like it was a mix LP and points were awarded for clever genre-bending.  In comparison, 1998's "Psyence Fiction" was a grab bag of guest artists and their different styles, but the unifying theme could be classified as "the soundtrack to the weird sci-fi movie that only James Lavelle can see".

On TLYKTB, rather than prove his command of his record collection by sampling from various genres for the creation of something entirely new, he's "adding to this pile, whether [he] wants to admit it or not".  Some examples:

• "Border Crossing" -- this sounds like the kind of uninspired hip-hop / metal cross over stuff that formed the basis of 1997's surprisingly bland "Spawn: The Album".  This song is very similar to "Artifact" from "The Outsider" (that's bad); sadly this just doesn't slam like "Drums of Death" from "Psyence Fiction"

• "I Gotta Rokk" -- songs that talk about rocking typically don't; this does not compare favorably to, say, "The Number Song" which really does rock

• "Sad and Lonely" -- this (and the remix, "(Not So) Sad and Lonely") would be right at home on Moby's 1999 LP "Play"

• "Warning Call" -- featuring Tom Vek, this could easily be Bauhaus and Simple Minds collaborating on a track for a John Hughes memorial LP  

• "Scale It Back" -- technically this is Little Dragon guesting on a DJ Shadow song, but this could easily be the other way around

Some of the songs are pretty good:

• "Stay The Course" -- a pretty good song featuring Talib Kwei and Posdnuous, but I can't help but compare it to prior Solesides offerings like "Alphabet Aerobics"

• "I've Been Trying" -- this first appeared on the 2010 "Def Surrounds Us" single; as I noted then this sounds a lot like "Broken Levee Blues" from "The Outsider"

• "Back To Front (Circular Logic)", "Tedium", "Redeemed", "Run For Your Life", and "Circular Logic (Front To Back)" -- all good songs, and all would be comfortably at home on "The Private Press, esp. "Fixed Income", "Monosylabik", "You Can't Go Home Again

The worst song on here is "Give Me Back The Nights", based on a spoken word, teenage screed of unknown origin.  I can't tell if it is supposed to be serious or a humorous Corey Flood tribute, but it doesn't work in either context.  In 1994 he used a fevered prison recording in the break for "Lost and Found"; it made no sense either but was used to better effect.

In summary, this is a good but not essential record. It does remove the bad taste of "The Outsider", but when I compare "The Less You Know, The Better" to recent innovative releases from artists like Andy Stott (e.g., "We Stay Together", "Passed Me By") or Balam Acab (e.g., "See Birds"), I can't help but think of a 40 year old Kevin Smith.

Standout songs: "Stay The Course", "Back To Front (Circular Logic)", "Tedium", "Redeemed", "Run For Your Life", "Circular Logic (Front To Back)"

Skip 'em songs:  "Give Me Back The Nights"

Summary: 6/10

Bonus Link: DJ Shadow giving a track-by-track summary for Billboard Magazine

Bonus Reviews: NPR, Spin, Pitchfork, Metacritic

* = An unkind reading of some of the song titles ("Stay The Course", "Tedium", "Going Nowhere", "I've Been Trying") suggests that at some level he knows he's recycling material.