Overall, I'd say the year was alright for music. Or maybe I just wasn't able to pay as much attention as I normally would since my life got flip turned upside down about halfway through and I had to (haaaaaad to) move to Australia and 6 months later I'm still trying to get settled into a new life. But hey! Life was good this year. And music was good this year, too. Especially from new artists making debuts. Just maybe not in as copious amounts as it was in 2017. Which made it much easier for me to make this list this year. Even if it probably took me longer. But again - life got flip turned upside down. But now, here we go, with my 10 favorite albums of the year!
10. Middle Kids - Lost Friends
This is the only band I haven't put on the blog this year, so I'll just write a quick little something. They are very good. And I've just learned last week they are Australian. And I'm a middle kid. And my favorite songs off the album are probably On My Knees and Never Start. So those are going into the blog. But everyone else already has songs on the blog, and I've written about them before, so you just get links for them.
I've just spent the last few days in Wellington, doing pretty much nothing. It's been kind of great. I decided to stop in a for a few days on my way home, because my friend Beth invited me to a Hannukah dinner that her chef friend was having. And I'm so glad I came. It meant a very stressful 72 hours back in Sydney, trying to get unpacked and whatnot, but since I got here, it's been total relaxation.
I've actually been working practically every day, but only for an hour or so. Other than that I've just been out and about, wandering the city, sitting outside reading, eating delicious food, and going to that Hannukah dinner I mentioned. Which was fantastic. I've done pretty much all the touristy stuff there is to do here already, but I did go back to a couple of museums. And part of me feels a bit guilty about not doing more, but I really think I needed this break and I'm very glad I had it. I've also managed to make it half way through the second season of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which I will hopefully finish on the flight home. That and maybe a bit of work. We'll see. I have 12 hours, so it would be a good time to do it.
For now, I've only got a few more hours in Wellington and I need to pack up before Beth gets home, so I'll go ahead and give you a couple more final music recs for the year. Both of today's are favorites of mine who have made new music.
I've already written about My Brightest Diamond this year, but then she actually dropped an album out of nowhere, called A Million and One. This is a weird one for me. I was not as immediately smitten with it as past albums, and somewhere in the back of my mind I have this idea of it being corny. But then every time I actually listen to it, I'm surprised at how good it is. I think it comes from the fact that a couple of the singles she put out before the album were quite poppy and dancy, which is not what I expected from her. I expected something more... dramatic? I don't think that's the right word. But I think of her music as being very orchestral and operatic and something you would expect to see performed on stage. This did not immediately strike me as that. But the more I listen, the more I hear it in there, and it's just these sort of dancy parts that stick in your head and make you forget about it. So yeah, good album, but I still need a few more listens. The best track on the album is definitely You Wanna See My Teeth. I actually remember her playing this in Paris back in April and I couldn't wait for it to be released, and it does not disappoint at all. Fantastic song. Lots of drama. Lots of good noises.
I think the other song I'll share is Supernova. This one is pretty dancy, but also really great. Kind of gives you an idea of what I'm thinking of when I listen to the album. But overall, it's a great one.
And then we have Ex:Re (pronounced ex ray), which is the solo project of Elena Tonra from Daughter, one of my favorite bands. And she is just as melancholy and beautiful in this project as she is in Daughter. The eponymous debut also came out of nowhere, and I only found out about it because it was announced on the Daughter Instagram and Facebook like a week before coming out, when they released the first single, Romance. Which just so happens to be the best song on the album. and don't let the title fool you. It's a pretty heartbreaking song. I think it's the only one I'm going to share from the album actually. It's a great album, but needs a few more listens to find out which songs I really love. These songs are slow burns. They definitely take time to get into the details and really listen to. But it is worth taking the time.
The last month has been insane. I took my last trip back to China, where I planned that big trade show, and now I'm back in Australia. But I'm back for less than 72 hours, and they have been non-stop hours. I landed Wednesday at noon, came home, and my delivery of all my stuff from China was waiting for me. So I spent the day unpacking that. Then I went to work Thursday, and came home to keep unpacking. And this morning I flew to Melbourne for a meeting in the morning, flew back, kept unpacking and organizing and cleaning (I've done like 10 loads of laundry in the last 72 hours) and then had my work Holiday Dinner. And then came home and packed. But I want to put some music on, because I have 2 more blogs I want to share music on before I do my top 10, which I'm working on. But it's midnight and I'm getting up at 6:30, so I'll jump right in.
Today's music is 2 new (to me) artists. The first is Low Leaf. She's a Filipino American hippy who makes insane music. Good insane. Influenced-from-all-over-the-world-and-blended-perfectly insane. I've just found out about her via her new EP PRiMiTiVA, which is fantastic. I mean, just listen to this song, Yah Yah.
Right from the start, it's all like "what?" And then the beat comes in, and it's like "what???" And it just keeps going from there. Then follow that up with the closing track on the EP Journey to GiGA GAiA. She has older stuff, only one album of which I've listened to and it was just ok, but I will be going back and listening to everything she has done based on this EP.
And the next artist is Tirzah, and she really is new. Well, first album new, but not first EP new. And I learned that apparently she started doing her thing at the same time and in the same place as FKA Twigs and Jai Paul. And her bff is Micachu (whose first album was fantastic and weird, and then the subsequent stuff was not as fantastic). And now Micachu has helped produce Devotion, Tirzah's debut album. It is also really weird. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I think I need to listen to it many times more and may just come to love it. Or not. I don't know. But I do know that the song Guilty I immediately loved.
And then there's the song Go Now, which was the other stand out track to me. And which is not as pop-vocally as Guilty. Not that Guilty is pop at all. This is weird music. Today's music is all super weird.
Also, I think both Micachu and Tirzah are Jewish. Just saying.
Time to talk about the family China trip. Which was great. And stressful. And annoying. But great. We had 6 people on the trip - the parents, 2 uncles (mom's brother and dad's brother), and 2 family friends. My parents and my dad's brother (Jerry) had been to China before, but for everyone else it was the first time. The other uncle (Tio Jaime) has pretty much not left America in 50 years since he moved there from Mexico. Then the family friends (the Mehrdads) have traveled some and have wanted to come to China for years cause they do a lot of importing from China, but this was the first time they actually did.
So everyone got to Shanghai pretty late on a Friday night, but Hanna and I went to pick them up at the airport. Which means we got home at like 2am, so we had a late start and just went straight to lunch for dim sum. Obviously, food was a big part of this trip. Saturday was the only full day Hanna and I had with them with no tours or anything planned, so we went up to the glasses market, since everyone wanted glasses. And boy did they buy glasses. The Mehrdads got like 6 for themselves, and thanks to all the negotiating, my mom even ended up getting a pair for free! After that, it was on to the Zotter Chocolate Theater, which is my friend Julia's family company, and is a giant chocolate factory making amazing chocolate. I've talked about it before. From Austria, been to that one a couple times, Julia, etc. You know. So we ate a bunch of chocolate there, then went straight for a huge Yunnan feast for dinner with like 12 of our friends. Sadly on the way out, my mother had a little fall. She seems to be doing this every time she travels, which is worrisome. Especially considering how much she travels. She actually hurt her leg in Prague when she fell and had to go to the hospital. This time was not bad and she just scraped her elbow, but it definitely freaks me out. But we got it out of the way and then everyone was super aware for the rest of the trip and watching out for her, so no more accidents after that.
Day 2 started out at the Bund with some Starbucks and street food, then straight into the Jewish tour. There's a really interesting Jewish history in Shanghai from the late 19th century all the way to the end of WWII. Jews pretty much built Shanghai, actually. Modern Shanghai anyway. Without them, it would not be what it is today. So we started at the Bund and got some historical perspective, then went on to a few of the famous Jewish sites and learned a ton. There are a few of these tours, but there's a guy called Dvir whose said to be the best and most informative. And he was extremely informative, if nothing else. But yeah, it was a great tour. Then we took a Tai Chi class with my friend's husband, went to the fake market (so much shopping on this trip....), and then, of course, to dinner, this time for Shanghainese food.
I actually ended up taking the Monday off as well, so I took them on a tour of Old Town, around Yuyuan Gardens, one of Shanghai's most famous tourist spots. It's just an old-style market which is now super touristy all the time, but it's nice to see, and there's a nice garden (which we didn't go into) and an interesting temple, and we got a good walk through some of the really old housing areas. And then, in the afternoon, it was back to shopping. Of course. And then back to the Bund for a nice dinner at El Willy, one of my favorites! Tuesday Hanna "got sick" and took them on a tour to Suzhou, which was supposedly great. That tour guide was their favorite of the whole trip. And for dinner - Co. Cheese. My favorite, and actually many people's favorite for the trip. Then on Wednesday they had a guide and a free day to do whatever they want, so they went to watch people exercise in the park and they went to another old Synagogue and to our friend Daliah's restaurant for lunch and other stuff. I'll skip the fights, cause by this point there were already some, but it was all good in the end and they enjoyed everything, including dinner, which was Xinjiang food. Sadly my favorite place is closed for renovations, so I had to take them to another place that's good, but nothing amazing.
Then we were off to Beijing by train. I think everyone enjoyed taking the train, actually. Although we got a new train, which was good in some ways, but no longer displays the speed. That's half the fun. Those things go like 350 km/h, and you know everyone needs a photo of that. But not this time. First day in Beijing was pretty easy, just relaxed, went to an acrobatics show and had dumplings for dinner. Which was Tio Jaime's favorite meal of the trip. It was more than just dumplings, but it was a dumpling restaurant, so that was the main thing. Oh! And this place does colorful dumplings with all kinds of crazy fillings, and we got a kung pao chicken one which was amazing. Yes, kung pao chicken is real Chinese food. Just not in most restaurants outside China. And there are 2 ways to make it, the good way and the bad way. This place used the good way, which is the real Southern Chinese style, not the bastardized Northern Chinese style. Then we went to bed, although I got woken up very confused late in the night when Hanna arrived (she worked that day, I did not).
Then Friday was Great Wall day! And we got some great autumn leaves on the wall, which means I've not gotten the wall in all 4 seasons. They say it's different in every season, and it sure is. Summer is green everywhere, Autumn has all the colorful leaves, Winter has snow (if you're lucky, which I was, cause it's actually rare), and then Spring has peach blossoms. So this was a great trip to the wall for me, in what may be my last visit for who knows how long. After the touristy bit we also visited a non-touristy bit where we had to climb up a small dirt path to the top of a hill, where we were able to climb onto an unrestored part of the wall and look out at it over onto the mountains nearby and even dipping down into the water nearby. That second part was not too difficult of a climb, but for my mother with bad knees and my uncle with emphysema, it was too much, so sadly they didn't join us. But it was a great part, called Huanghuacheng. If you go, I would definitely recommend trying to get here. It's not far from Mutianyu, which is the least touristy tourist part of the wall. So easy to put together into a single day.
Then we had our last full day in Beijing, where we did a city tour, heading to the Forbidden City and Lama Temple, which is one of Beijing's most famous temples. Followed by Sichuan food for dinner, at a place I used to love, but which has completely changed the menu and was super disappointing. I debated over doing Sichuan and Xinjiang in Beijing or Shanghai and which places to go to, and in the end, I got it wrong. Very sad. Because based on past experience it should have been alright. And Xinjiang was. But Sichuan was not. And I know it could have been better.
Sunday was the last day of the trip, so I took everyone to one of my favorite places in Beijing - Panjiayuan, or the Dirt Market. It's basically an early morning antique market, although on the weekends it starts later and you can go any time. And it was a big hit! Especially with the Mehrdads whose business is importing and selling all kinds of tchochkies, they loved it. Followed by more Western food at Great Leap, a local Beijing brewery that makes the best burger in China. And is just generally fantastic. Then train to Shanghai, one last dinner of xiaolongbao at Din Tai Fung, and bed for everyone to go to the airport at 430am.
So yeah, fantastic trip which everyone loved, especially Tio Jaime. He was the big surprise of the trip, and one of the best things. He never travels, and to see him take to it so easily and love every second, and also be the least needy, was fantastic. Now he's even talking about coming to Australia with my parents next year, and I hope he does!
Ok, that was long! That's why I don't like writing super long blogs. It just took me half an hour to write that. And who's actually gonna read it? Wendy. That's who. Anyway, time for music. Today staring with something I should have talked about a long time ago - Big Red Machine. This is another sort of supergroup, made up of Justin Vernon of Bon Iver fame, and Aaron Dessner of The National fame. Two fantastic bands, now come together to make more music which is pretty similar to Bon Iver music actually. But great! Case in point, Air Stryp.
So they put out their first songs months ago, which is why I say I'm behind. But the eponymous album (definitely debut, but maybe it will be only? Who knows with bands like this) just came out about a month ago. So I guess that still makes me behind on reporting this. But it's a great album, more for the fans of Bon Iver than fans of The National. Favorite track is probably Melt, the closer, so that's what we're going with next.
Then I'll share one more band who I found recently that I was quite impressed with. That band is Palace. This UK trio is gearing up for the release of their sophomore album, and so the song Heaven Up There, the most recent single, showed up on one of my new music playlists. And I was immediately a fan. Plus it's like 7 minutes long, which we know I love.
So I loved that song and went to hear more, and found that they actually have an album that came out a couple years ago called So Long Forever. And it is a pretty damn good album. I kind of go back and forth on it depending on my mood, between thinking it's amazing and thinking it's all kind of same-same. But I do really like it. Reminds me of Palatine, the French band I fell in love with earlier this year. Super chill, kind of classic rock sound. With some great guitar riffs. Holy Smoke is probably my favorite on the album. But again, I go back and forth with this album, so I'm not really sure. Definitely worth checking out though, and can't wait for the new one!
Today was a strange day at work. The morning was super busy and by lunch time it felt like I'd spet 2 days at the office. Then the afternoon was totally dead. Not totally dead, really, just slow, so I played some catch up. And I had to demote someone this morning. That wasn't fun. For either of us, I'm sure. But I guess it went better than I had expected. About as well as you could expect. So now it's a quiet Friday night for me. I think I'll take myself out for a nice dinner nearby. But before that, as promised, day 2 of the man music.
Today's underlying theme is artists I enjoy who have recently put out very, very good music. Or at least one very, very good song. Starting out with Kurt Vile. Kurt Vile has had a few very, very good songs, but overall just good songs. Well now his new album Bottle It Up is maybe my favorite album by him. And this song One Trick Ponies, which was one of the singles, is maybe his best song. Ever. Although, when I did see him live, he did lay that song Downbound Train that was pretty fantastic live. But we're here for One Trick Ponies today.
Next up is How To Dress Well. A weird guy, this one. Sometimes really good. Sometimes just really out there. And sometimes really boring. Well he's also got a new album called The Anteroom and it's probably his best album to date as well. But overall, gets a bit boring and repetitive, but maybe cause he kind of repeats some songs with small changes and different lyrics at different points in the album. Like I said, weird guy. But Nonkilling 6 | Hunger is really, really good.
Up next is someone I have not heard from in a very, very long time - Peter Bjorn and John. These Swedes have been around for years, and I think they have been making music regularly, but I just haven't paid much attention. They had that one great song about the knee bone and the ankle bone (I think it was called Collarbone, it was not the nursery rhyme), and that was a great song, but since then, I've paid zero attention. But now Gut Feeling has come out as a single off their new album (pretty poppy album, not very interesting or inventive, so not for me) and it's a pretty fun song. So it's also on here. And more upbeat and less sad than the last two songs, so better as we head into the weekend.
And now to close us out with a really fun song for the weekend is Toro y Moi, with his new single Freelance. This album is not actually out yet, this is just the first single off the new album, but it is a great and super fun song. I saw this guy in NYC years ago, and he was super fun live also. But on albums, he's usually just ok. I feel like this is going to be like Blood Orange, where there's one or two great songs, but overall I'm not a huge fan. But this song, I am a huge fan.
Ok, we're going to start 3 days in a row again. This time all male or male-led artists/bands. And today's underlying theme is artists I love who have released new music after a very long time of not releasing music. There are two of them.
Before I get into music, I guess I should talk about something. Specifically I should tell you about the big family trip to China. But I'm exhausted this week. It has been a very long week at work, and very busy. And this Saturday I will just be sitting at home waiting for the last of the furniture to arrive, so I can write a longer blog then.
For now, I guess I can tell you I am in Brisbane, at the airport, waiting to go back to Sydney. And I can't wait for the weekend. I'm trying out yoga at a gym near my place, which is a beautiful gym in a wonderful old building, which also has a fantastic coffee shop and restaurant and cinema and boutique hotel. And the gym is on the rooftop, so we do yoga with great views. And I made 2 new friends, a couple (I think) who also just moved here from Shanghai, and they're coming with! So it will be a good Saturday morning, followed by a long Saturday day sitting at home, writing about my trip with my family, maybe taking a nap, and probably finishing the newest season of House of Cards, which I just started. Oh, and finding new language tutors on iTalki. I need that, too.
And now on to the music. The first one is Beirut. That's right, he's back! And his new music is very much like his very old music when he first started getting buzz and making music. So Eastern European / Balkan influenced folk rock. What's not to love about that?? he had moved into more of the electronic indie folk direction on the last album, so it's nice to see him going back to those roots I love. He put out a song called Gallipoli a couple of weeks ago, which is the first single and title track off a new album he's working on, due out next February (Actually, I've just learned he's subsequently released another song as well, but it's just an instrumental called Corfu). And in even better news, I need to be in Munich for a trade show from April 8 - 14, and he plays a concert in Munich on April 15. I know what I'll be doing after the show!
The next one feels like they've been gone for even longer than Beirut was, but that's not actually true. They haven't put out an album since 2009, but they've had a few EPs, the most recent being 2015's EP3. And 2015 was also Beirut's last release, although that was a full album. The band I'm talking about is Zero 7, by the way. Probably should have said that earlier.
As in the past, Zero 7 has teamed up with a fantastic but unknown vocalist, this time named Hidden. Past notable collaborators include Jose Gonzalez and Sia. You may have heard of them. At this point, it's just one track, but they say there's more coming. So look forward to it!
We made it to day 3 in a row! Go me. I'm exhausted. Not cause of this, just cause I didn't sleep well. This is easy. I don't know why I didn't sleep well. I slept fantastically on Friday and rally well on Saturday, then horribly last night. Very annoying.
I did meet some new people last night! So a friend of mine had invited me to this "Meaningful Connections" event, where you go and get a list of meaningful questions to spark discussion with new people. It made me very uncomfortable, but I figured it was probably good for me. So I went. Even though my friend cancelled. I still decided to go. And it turned out to be pretty good. Some of the questions definitely made me very uncomfortable, but we didn't actually go through the questions very much. But just the fact that everyone was there with the intention of being open and meeting new people let do really good conversation and I met some really good people. There were 3 people in particular who I spent most of the evening talking with, and now we have all exchange info and will hang out. Still no Aussies, though. It was me, a Brit, and Indian and a Kiwi. Oh well. The Aussies will come eventually.
And today is day 3 in lady music, and it's all about the Latin ladies today. Starting out with ROSALIA. Who is amazing. She's a Spanish singer who has been credited with reviving flamenco music, although she hasn't really. What she's done is taken flamenco vocal and musical stylings and made it into extremely interesting pop music. On the poppy side, there's PIENSO EN TU MIRA Cap. 3: Celos, which is by far my favorite track on the album. I think I've listened to it about 10 times just today. I love everything about this song.
So that song was the second single off her new album, El Mal Querer. The other track I want to share by her is a bit of a weird choice. It's DE AQUI NO SALES Cap. 4 Disputa. I'm choosing this one because it very clearly shows both how she uses more traditional Flamenco styles in her vocals and well as her music, and then how she just completely flips it and uses completely modern instruments and styles. It's such a weird song. Definitely the weirdest one on the album. But maybe also the most intriguing. This album really is amazing.
And the other Latin lady who's just released her sophomore album is Empress Of. I loved her first album, Me, back in 2015, and the follow up, Us, is good, but not as good. More straightforward latin-dancy-pop sound, whereas I found the first album to be quite original. But still a good sound. And a few tracks I really like. In particular When I'm With Him.
We're back on the blog today, as promised. And, as promised, it's more music made by ladies today. There's a lot of good stuff lately by ladies. Much more than by the boys.
Before I get into it, one exciting thing: I finished furniture shopping! More or less. I still need some lamps. And probably some other small things. And I'm still waiting for all of my things to arrive from China. There's a fun story. I rushed to pack everything up and get it out on Sept 23, and then it was supposed to take 5-6 weeks including customs clearance time, arriving early November. Which is perfect since I'm in Australia in early November. Except the company lied to me and told me it would arrive then, but they actually didn't plan to ship it until October 19. Which means it will now arrive November 12, then take 15 days to clear customs, at which point I will be back in China. So I only get it in early December when I'm back for like a week. Fun. But whatever, I got my furniture. There is one bed I bought that is also delayed, so that's also only coming to me early December, but the rest of it should arrive next Saturday. After that I know I still need to get some lamps, and I know that I will still need to buy some pieces here and there, but I'm done. It will probably look horrible. I'm convinced it will look horrible. But I will find out next weekend...
Ok now on to the music, starting with Lala Lala, the project of Chicago-based Lillie West, who has just put out her second album, The Lamb. I first heard Water Over Sex off of that album, and I think the first time I heard it I wasn't too blown away. But then I heard it a few more times in random places and liked it more and more. I love the lo-fi rock feel.
So apparently West was always drunk and high in the past while making music and is now sober, and that's what opening track Destroyer is about - getting sober. And it is probably the best track on the album. Overall, the album is pretty solid. These two tracks are definite standouts, while the rest just kind of moves along sounding very similar. Good sound, but not a lot of variety. Except in these two. And we all know how I love a good opening track. And that chorus is fantastic.
Then this week we had the new single from Georgia come out, and this song is a banger. Wait until that chorus comes in and the beat drops. Cause damn. This girl put out an album in 2015 when she was like 17 or 21 or something. I don't know. But she was very young and did everything herself and made extremely interesting, unique pop music. And she's finally back and at it again with the single Started Out. This is a great start for album 2. And a very fun video.
And the last track for today is from boygenius. In case you were wondering, the theme here today is alternative music, as opposed to yesterday's R&B and tomorrow's Latin. So boygenius is a supergroup made of Lucy Dacus (fantastic), Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker (both good). And when they come together, they are very good. Very, very good. No idea if it's just a single EP they're putting out or if this is going to be a longer thing, but they have an EP called boygenius out now and it's great. Favorite track is probably the opener Bite the Hand, although Salt in the Wound is also great. But we'll go with the opener, cause it was also a single. But for some reason not on Youtube? None of their songs are. So Spotify embed it is.
Once again, I'm here catching up. Because things were nuts over the last two weeks when I was in China. The family came to visit so I was super busy with that, and then also had to help my sister get ready to move, and also the government was being particularly strict on the internet. So I have not written anything. But I'm back in Australia for a couple of weeks and I will take advantage of these two weeks and catch up on music.
So I'm going to spend at least the next 3 days sharing music with you. And the next 3 days is only women. After that, I've got a couple days worth of music by men or male-led groups to share. But these next 3 days are all women. Now I have accountability.
Starting out with ESKA. She's a British signer-songwriter who put out an album like 3 years ago, but I'm just now hearing about her, thanks to some great live clips Moses Sumney posted on his instagram. Apparently she was even nominated for the Mercury Prize, but I guess I just never noticed. Well, she is quite interesting. Only the one album, but it is a unique listen, so I'll share a couple songs, starting with Rock of Ages.
Really beautiful, and kind of strange. And it continues with Shades of Blue I definitely don't LOVE her, but I really like her and find her very interesting. And definitely worth my (and your) time.
And then we've got Yazmin Lacey, who I also found via Instagram. Although she was through a clip of her Tiny Desk concert on NPR. Nothing too unique about her, I guess. Just really good soul music. And a fantastic voice. And I guess if you can catch my attention in a 60 second live clip, that's a good thing. And she did. She's got 2 EPs (both of which I rushed to buy), so we'll go chronologically, starting with Still, my favorite track from her 2017 EP, Black Moon.
And then this year she followed it up with When The Sun Dips 90 Degrees, another great EP. Favorite song on there is probably Body Needs Healing. Actually, I think Black Moon is the better EP. But both great. And these are two fantastic songs. So hopefully 2019 finally means an album.
I got back to China on Saturday, and it's been a great weekend. I arrived Saturday morning and actually had to run and do a health check for my Australia visa, but then met up with a friend for coffee, then went home and got a few errands done and some planning for the family visit done, and then went out. I had made plans to go to this place Shake, which is a supper club with live music that has great food and great music and I haven't been to in a very long time. But before that, I went and drank a bit of wine. Not a bunch, but a bit. There was a Spanish wine festival that my sister and some friends were at, so I just met up for the tail end, which meant only a couple glasses of wine. Followed by many many cocktails and much dancing and eating. Great night. Great first day. Not so great second day. That was all hungover. So I did not leave the house. I barely even left bed before 11:00am. I had to cancel my yoga class and just lay in bed watching TV. Which was actually fantastic. And then when Hanna came home from the gym, we watched a movie and took a nap. And then had a private yoga lesson at the house, which means I did work out after all! And then did more trip planning, ordered dinner, and watched another movie. What a great day, despite the hangover.
Now I have two exciting songs to share today from two exciting bands. One of which is one of my favorites. That being Little Dragon. It seems like they haven't done anything in forever, but they actually put out an album in 2017. But I guess that was in April. And actually, this is the fourth stand alone single they've put out since that album came out. So I have no idea what I'm talking about. They've been busyish. And so they're putting out an EP next month (apparently their first) called Lover Chanting. Which is also the name of this song. And they've moved over to Ninja Tune, which is a fantastic label. Very exciting things.
Then out of nowhere and actually very delayed is Untold, the new single from RY X. So this guy popped up like 5 years ago and I love him. He's in a bunch of side projects, so he has been making music, but not as RY X. And he's Australian, so I will probably be seeing him very soon! But yeah, now he's got a lovely new single out, the first from his new album, Unfurl, which will be out next year. So now you get to listen to it and sit in anticipation just like me!
I fly back to China tonight! Woohoo! And I spend nearly 3 weeks there, cause the family is coming next week. Still trying to plan all of that out. But I get a week with friends and then a bit over a week with family and friends. Good stuff!
In Australia, things are fine. Keeping busy. Starting to have more fun, I guess, but still meeting people. I have 2 friends now, I'd say. And I have one other high potential who is also Chinese which means I can practice Chinese with her. And then I went to a Moishe House event this week and met another guy who's a bit weird but nice and interesting. So there's progress on that front.
On the home front, I have all the furniture I need, I guess. It isn't all delivered yet, but it's purchased. Up next is a dining table and chairs, small couch/chair/loveseat, and - most importantly - patio furniture.
And the guests are starting to line up, too! I have my friend from Canberra maybe coming the weekend I get back, then the next weekend I'll probably be in Auckland, then a friend from Shanghai will be here, then I go back to Shanghai, then I go home, then around Christmas I have a good friend coming for like 10 days, and the day after he leaves another friend and his wife are coming for the weekend (as part of a longer trip). And then it's almost Chinese New Year when I should have China friends coming. So it's all good stuff! I just need to learn more about Sydney for them. Especially what to eat and drink. That's important.
Got some good pop music for you today. First up are the two new singles from Robyn's new album, Honey, which is due out at the end of the month. The first single was Missing U, which is great. Typical fun, dancey Robyn. I heard this one and immediately thought back to the good old days of Dancing On My Own. Which everyone loves, right?
And then the next single was the title track, Honey. Not as fun, but give it a couple listens and it's still pretty damn good. These two singles have me feeling like this is going to be a very, very solid album.
And then since we're in a poppy mood, here's a new song by a new artist that I liked. That artist is Ames, and that song is Hold On. She's been around as a songwriter for a while, but I am too embarrassed to tell you who she has written songs for. They are very big, very mainstream pop singers. So I should not like this. But I do.
Aaaaand, I'll put one more pop song here. Cause after all, it's Friday. This song is from Norwegian fairy AURORA, who has a new EP. I guess it's an EP. It's like 8 tracks. That's almost an album. Definitely a mini album. Longer than an EP. Anyway, it's out and it's called Infections of a Different Kind (Step 1), with Step 2 apparently coming next year. And, as expected, it's quite good. Best song is Queendom, so that's going in here.
So I just need to quickly share with you some music from what may be the best album of the year (definitely a strong contender), and from what may be one of the top 10 albums of the year (a surprising addition).
The first one is Kingdoms in Colour, the new album from Maribou State. Now Maribou State have made some amazing remixes in the past, which I have loved very, very much. But never have they made an album that I love very, very much. Until now. This new album is amazing. Right from the get go. I would be shocked if it's not Top 10 - or even Top 3 - for me this year. So, right from the get go, here's Beginner's Luck.
And then I'll skip to Turnmills, one of the singles. So good. When that beat comes in at about 35 seconds. Oy. And the strings! So so good. And we're only at track 3. This whole album is just so good.
And then the surprise is For Ever, the new album from British band Jungle. This is one of those massive groups of musicians, and this new album is super soulful and funky. I don't really remember their first album, but I was already hooked when I heard Heavy, California, one of the early singles off of this album. Obviously I'm interested if it has to do with California. But this is actually really good also. Even better.
And then the album really stays so good. So soulful and funky. And I do remember seeing them at a music festival a few years back and being impressed with the live show, which is good because they're coming to Australia in April. So I'll definitely be going to that. So the next track I'll share is Cosurmyne, from later in the album. Not a single, and maybe not as fun as some of the others, but it's got a great piano riff and some great strings. And they've got some great strings and instrumentation throughout the whole album. This album was really a very pleasant surprise to me.
Wow I am behind. Things have been crazy, as you may have imagined. What with the move and having like 1 1/2 jobs and all. At first, the job here in Australia was pretty crazy and I was working lots of hours. But as of this week, it feels like it's normalizing. So that's excellent. And the China job is also slowing down, but maybe that's just due to the holiday in China at the moment. Who knows.
But in general, things are good and life is normalizing. Since last speaking, I moved into my apartment, went back to China for a week and packed everything up, and bought a bunch of furniture. I still have more furniture to buy, but I've got the major things, I'd say. And after my next trip to China (which is next Friday and will end at the beginning of November) all of my stuff should arrive in Sydney and I should be able to actually put together my house how I want it. Finally.
In fact, I am writing this at work. Because I actually have time to. Crazy, right? Who would have thought. I don't want to go too much into it now, I just want to give a quick update and share some music (cause I'm way behind on that, too), but I still do need to tell you about my friends and my work and my life. I'll try to get that all in before I go to China next week. Cause once I'm back in China, then the family comes and there's going to be plenty going on and no time to write and then more to write about after. So for now I play catch-up.
Today's music will start with Hiatus Kaiyote. This is nothing new, but it is something amazing. Maybe my favorite Australian band. In fact, when I first moved here, I was trying to listen to a lot of Australian music. You know, to get in that Australian mood. But I refused to listen to Hiatus Kaiyote. I wanted to save Hiatus Kaiyote to be the first music I listened to in my new home. So I did that. And then when I was in China I brought back my small Sonos speakers and I started over with Hiatus Kaiyote. And when the rest of my stuff (and speakers) arrive, I will do it again. Picking which song to start with was difficult, I have to admit, so to make it easier I just started with The World It Softly Lulls, first of all because it's amazing, but more importantly because it is the first song I heard by Hiatus Kaiyote, and seemed fitting. So that's going to be the first song on the blog today.
And then there's a couple good tracks that fall into this soul/funk/R&B genre that I'll tack on today as well. The first one is a new song from BADBADNOTGOOD, who I'm not a huge fan of, but it features Little Dragon, who I am a huge fan of, and is the first song I've heard by them that I really do enjoy. It's called Tried. No idea what it's from. Neither band has new music in the works that I'm aware of. But anyway here it is.
And our last track for the day is another collaboration. Well, a remix, officially. But same difference. It's what I thought was a new Kelela track, but it turns out it is not new, but rather Kelela has a new remix album, called TAKE ME A_PART, which apparently comes out today. And her track Waitin has been remixed by none other than KAYTRANADA, who is wonderful. Kelela is pretty great herself, but add in some KAYTRANADA and you can't go wrong. Starts out super chill. Gets super awesome and super chill at about 2:30. Stays super awesome and super chill. Really great remix. Much better than the original.
As a side note, I just want to point out that I feel like there are a lot of caps in my post today. But it's not my fault. I had to. For artistic integrity. You get it.
Let me just start by saying I hate furniture shopping. I did not think I would. I thought I would love it. But I spent my weekend doing it, and now I hate it. I mainly hate it because I move in Wednesday, have only been in my apartment once during the viewing, have no dimensions for the apartment, people in Australia are lazy and only work Monday - Friday 9 - 5, even in shops and restaurants, and I have all the big bosses coming in from Germany this week for a board meeting so this is literally the worst week I could have to sit at an empty apartment for a day waiting for shit to arrive. And also, it takes forever to deliver this shit! You have to order months in advance! What the fuck! I hate this. I'm so glad the worst of it is over. At least the shopping part. Not the moving yet. And the way the week is going, it's just going to get worse. Whatever. I don't need to complain. I just need to listen to good music. Let's do that instead.
So I usually have a theme that runs through the music when I post multiple artists. It might have to do with the place I am or the style of music or just some random weird shit that makes sense in my head and my head only. But one thing I do quite often is post single songs from artists who I think only have one good song, and the rest of their music is just meh. But that one good song is really damn good, always. And that's today's theme. Sounds great here, but no need to look any further. And then what usually also happens with these songs is that I get excited about them but not excited enough to share the artist or share it too quickly so I put it off until I have like 3 random songs to share in a single blog post. And that's how we got to where we are today.
The first song is the one I've been putting off the longest, and it is from Rick Leigh. I know nothing about him because I really liked this song but when I went to listen to more I wasn't impressed so I didn't look any further. But this song Everything is beautiful. Like really, really beautiful. Somewhere between Radiohead and Patrick Watson. Now, it is his first single, and he only has one EP out, so maybe there can be more wonderful stuff like this, but for now, just listen to this song. Probably on repeat. Cause it's so damn good.
So we started out chill, and we'll pick it up a little bit, but still keep it pretty chill with the next song. The next song being Escape, by Ouri. Now, Escape is the first single for the year from Ouri, but there are also some other EPs and even an album last year. But the album is not good. And listening to the album, you would think Ouri is a producer, not a singer. But then from the images I see, it makes me think there are two Ouris? One who put out a meh album in 2017, and one who put out a great single in 2018? I have no idea.
OK. I wanted to know so I just googled it. She is a producer, but now Escape is the first single off her upcoming EP We share our blood, and it's the first time she's actually song on a track. So maybe that's what makes the difference? Anyway, her last album isn't bad, just a bit boring. But this is good. Super chill, a bit 90s, sultry and sexy. Very nice.
Now we switch directions entirely (musically, anyway) and introduce you to Pizzagirl. What a name for a band! And the song is Coffee Shop. I love coffee! And I LOVE the na na nas all through this song. So fun. So good. So much na na na. And while the last song was super 90s, now we're back into the 80s here. So basically your typical indie pop-rock. Makes me think of Nation of Language, who I introduced you to earlier this year. Anyway, there is no pizza or girls in this song. Just coffee and fun times. And it's also by far the best song on their only EP. The rest of the EP is, once again, meh. But this! So much yes! Na na na na na na na!
I'm just gonna quickly put a couple of fun new songs here. Well, not so new anymore. The first one, and the newer one, is Hiding, the new single from IAN SWEET. I loved IAN SWEET's first album back in 2016, and now I guess they're gearing up for something new. Which is exciting!
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And the other one is Still Let You Down, the newest single from Day Wave. Although this one is not so new anymore. It's gotta be at least a couple months old. I really like this song. Also first single from what I guess is something new coming out later this year. Anyway, both exciting! Yay! Enjoy!
It was another busy week, but this time I was social! Kind of. Monday and Friday I worked late. Like until 7 or 8. But that's fine. Cause Tuesday I met a friend of a friend who was really great and who I might see again today. And Wednesday, I saw the mutual friend. The mutual friend is this girl Maya who I know from Shanghai. We don't know each other well, she's probably closer to my sister, but we're friendly, and she's from Sydney. Specifically from the neighborhood where I've been staying. So she invited me over to her parents house for dinner on Wednesday, and it was so nice. Her parents are fantastic (so is she by the way. She's hilarious. Super weirdo. Best kind of weirdo). They made a really great tagine and cous cous dinner, and we basically just hung out for like 3 hours. It was so nice. And they're going to give me a box of stuff to use before my China stuff gets here so that I don't have to go and buy plates and cups and sheets and towels, which I already have in China. Anyway, two great nights with great people. And then Thursday was aerial yoga, which is also great.
And now it's the weekend and I'm furniture shopping. For the first time ever. I have only ever bought a coffee table from Ikea in college (which I had for a year), and a bookcase in South Africa (which I also had for a year). Otherwise, I've always had furnished places. Or lived at my parents / took their furniture to my apartment. I have no idea what I'm doing, and I spent the whole day doing it yesterday. And will again today. At least the morning. But it's coming together. And I need it all delivered Friday cause I have nothing and I need at least a couch and bed on Friday. But I'll get more.
Anyway, on to music. And today is Rubblebucket. I only found them last year, and really liked a couple of their songs. Now they have a new album out called Sun Machine, and I really like the album. The first (I think?) single, Lemonade, was a big hit on all the indie stuff I look at, and it's a pretty good track. I think the more I listen the more I like it. But apparently the most popular one, and a very good one, is Fruity. So we'll start there.
But the best track on the album, by far, is Donna. This is the sound I love Rubblebucket for. They just do a great mix of rock and pop and interesting instrumentation. This song embodies what I love about them perfectly. So good.
Well today was exciting! Not as a day entirely, but just a couple of things about it. And these couple of things kind of go hand in hand, I guess. But they are exciting for different reasons.
The first exciting thing is I finally went back to a yoga class. I have been wanting to go but haven't looked too much into it. I only looked at places I was recommended by my yoga teacher in Shanghai (she's Australian and used to live here and actually got trained here) but they're all in the city. But I looked up what's around me and found something and finally went in this morning. I have done yoga one time in the last 6 weeks or so and I've been missing it. It just makes me so relaxed. It's my favorite.
Anyway, so I went back to yoga today, and we had a substitute teacher, this Japanese woman. And at one point she said something to someone else in Japanese about a Japanese language yoga class. So after class I spoke to her in Japanese and asked her about it, and it happened right then, so I took another yoga class in Japanese! It was difficult, there were a lot of things I didn't catch, but I got like 70% of it and was able to follow along. And tonight I have a session with my tutor so we're focusing on body parts and body movement verbs.
I will definitely go back to the studio cause I got a great 2 week intro deal and it's close to the hotel. And hopefully I won't be in the hotel for more than 2 weeks... And anyway, I actually might keep coming later on. If there's a Sunday class, it's actually only about a 20 minute drive from where I want to live, and if I can do it in Japanese, that's fantastic practice. And hopefully friends. And there was a Japanese pottery shop across the street that looked like they did classes and I want to go ask about it. Lots of Japanese stuff around there, actually. Which was surprising cause it was like a little street in a neighborhood that all of a sudden had a row of shops and restaurants among the houses. And they were 90% Japanese. I'll find out more and report back.
And I'll also report on rum.gold now. He is a new artist from New York (of course) making more queer black music. I've written about this a couple of times lately. And we all know I'm obsessed with Moses Sumney. And now here's rum.gold who's somewhere in between Moses Sumney and James Vincent McMorrow. I heard his track Where There's Smoke on a playlist a few weeks back and immediately loved it.
Love that falsetto. And everything else about it. He actually only has two songs out, the other being Cashmere Cage, which is also fantastic. And nice to hear his non-falsetto voice, which is also fantastic. He'll be putting out an EP called yaRn in January, I think. I'll be impatiently waiting for it, cause this is some excellent stuff.
So this is the first Australia post. Things have been pretty hectic since I got here. Although not so fun. I showed up about 10 days ago now. Got in and went straight to work. And then again the next day. And then it was the weekend. And I spent my entire Saturday first house hunting, then applying for apartments. Because you have to go through this insane application process to get a place here. It's dumb. It's like 10 pages of questions and you have to give all kinds of supporting documentation. I've never seen anything like it. Then Sunday was for car shopping. That was a new one. Never done that before. And then Sunday night I did my first fun thing, which was go to the movies and see Blackkklansman. Great film. Highly recommended. Also super sad. But super well done.
Then I was back at work. And every day it's like 10 hours. Which is fine, I don't mind. I have nothing else to do and don't know anyone, so no big deal. I did have my first non-work social interactions this week, though, which was pretty nice. I should say that I don't know anyone in Sydney. I have a couple of friends of friends, and actually there is one girl I worked with in a restaurant for 6 months over a decade ago, but that's it. So I'm trying to meet people, although I'm more focused on getting an apartment first. Since I did get a car! Woohoo! Well, work got me a car. Even more woohoo! And it's a nice one. An Audi A4. Can't wait for that to show up. It is wonderful to drive. But I have to wait a couple of weeks still.
Anyway I did finally do something fun on Thursday, which was also my non-work social evening. I went to see Courtney Barnett! Pretty fitting for my first concert in Australia, as she's pretty massive when it comes to Indie music. And she's from Australia. And to make it even better, she played at the Sydney Opera House. Where better to go to my first concert since moving? I am actually not as huge of a fan of hers as most of the critics are, but her new album, Tell Me How You Really Feel, came out a few months ago, and it's actually quite good. Especially the opening track, Hopefulessness. Which is also what she opened the show with.
I love that slow build of the song. And it's a great bass line. And then finally really gets going at about 3:30. So this song, I love. But this is not how I think of Courtney Barnett. She is a witty singer-songwriter in my mind. But then this concert was a full on rock concert. She built up a lot of the songs and then just let them explode. Which was fantastic, but also kind of weird, considering we were in an opera theater. But hey, great show. And she's so deadpan but then the music goes crazy and it's fantastic.
So like I said, I enjoyed Courtney Barnett, but not as much as all the critics. Her first album, Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit, got a ton of attention and acclaim and I thought it was just ok. But it is clever. She's clever. And then she put out an album with Kurt Vile, who I feel similarly about, but it was a pretty damn good album. And then she started putting out singles from this new album, and I kind of liked them all. The first one that really caught me was Sunday Roast, though. It's funny, cause it's also super chill, but if you listen to the whole album (which you should) it is not so chill. There are lots of hard songs on there. Which now that I saw her live she has impressed on me, but listening to the album it did not overcome my idea of her being a chill singer-songwriter. But anyway, great show. And yay Australia! Although hopefully more yay soon when I actually have a house and can start to settle down. Hopefully that comes soon. And now, SundayRoast.
I haven't managed to write in nearly two weeks because I've been insanely busy. Last we spoke I was in Germany for work, and every day was full full full of meetings. I barely had a second to myself. But the first meeting was the best meeting. Because that was the meeting where they told me I was going to move to Australia. Finally. After a year of talking about, it's finally happening. If they didn't make it happen after this trip, I was probably going to quit at the end of the year. Luckily they did. And to make it even better, I am going to be General Manager. So now it's also a big promotion with full responsibility for Australia and New Zealand. Suffice it to say I'm a happy boy.
And from there, things just went crazy. I spent my time in Germany (including two nice weekends, one in Spain and one in Munich which I'll talk about later), and then I flew straight to Sydney to meet my new team. I got there on a Tuesday to meet them, the day after they fired the old GM and told him not to come back. So I spent two days there, then flew back to Shanghai where I spent 1 day, and now I'm sitting in the airport in Seoul on my way home. I think I've slept about 4 hours a night for the last week. One night I maybe slept 6 1/2. It has been exhausting, and the longest travel week of my life. 4 countries on 4 continents in a week. Insane. But it's all going to be worth it, cause now I'm going on vacation for 2 weeks, and then I move to Australia and start this great new job. So things are going well in the world of Minsky.
That's it for today. Good news! Yay! Next time I'll talk about Spain and Germany fun times.
Well, not totally it. There's still music. That's what this blog is about, after all. And today it's Dirty Projectors. They put out the album Dirty Projectors last year, which was one of my top albums of 2017. And without skipping a beat, there's a new album this year, called Lamp Lit Prose. Not as good as last year's, but still wonderful. And a wonderful treat to get so quickly. They started out with the first single Break-Thru back in May, and only once I listened to it on earphones did I realize how much I like it. I love the guitar riff throughout the song, but even more I love that dirty backwards sounding guitar riff during the verses. It's good stuff.
And then the album has a bunch of great collaborations, including Syd from The Internet (who also just put out a new album), Haim, Amber Mark, Robin Pecknold from Fleet Foxes, and Rostam. But the best collaboration, and the best track on the album, is with Empress Of, for the song Zombie Conqueror. A nice little start, but then when it picks up at 30 seconds, and the kick drum comes in like 10 seconds later, it just gets amazing. Such a fantastic song. I love this one. Definitely the best on an all-around fantastic album.
I had quite the weekend. I'm in Germany now, not sure if I mentioned that. But I am. I got here last Wednesday for some work stuff. Of which there is something to tell. But I'll wait until next week to tell it...
But anyway, as usual, Schrobenhausen is not very exciting. But I went to spend the weekend in Spain with my friend Roberto. He's from Valladolid, just north of Madrid, and moved home from Shanghai back in like March or April. I was planning to fly Friday after work, and since work finishes early on Fridays in Germany, that meant around 2pm. So I got to the airport and was making my way through security when I got an email that my flight was delayed, which meant I had 15 minutes for a connection, which would clearly not work. So I paid extra to change to a later flight that night and make sure I made it, because Roberto had something good planned for us for Friday night in Madrid. So I had about 6 hours to kill, so went into the city to see friends for a bit, since it's only half an hour away by train. All was going very well, until I got back online at 5pm to find an email saying they could not get me on the 7:30pm flight I booked, but could put me on one at 6pm, which I couldn't make. So, I spent the next hour on the phone with them, which resulted in me flying to Amsterdam, spending the night in an airport hotel, then flying at 7am to Madrid (which was delayed). Clearly not ideal. But I made it! And then we hopped right on a train to Valladolid.
Now, Valladolid is famous for tapas. There's other stuff, too. Roberto told me all kinds of history about how they're an old capital and all kinds of fun stuff. But what really matters are the tapas. This is where Spain's national tapas competition happens every year, where chefs come from all over the country to pair with local restaurants and make tapas for competition. Those tapas then stay on the menus in the bars and you can eat them year-round for next to nothing. We started out with some traditional tapas at a couple bars (of course with wine), the first one being a croqueta, which I learned is not always made from a potato base. Blew my mind. So a few tapas and a couple glasses of wine later, we went to Roberto's house, where his mother had prepared us a feast of paella, steamed crab and prawns, and grilled lamb chops. It was unbelievable. I had heard of her cooking prowess, and none of it was exaggerated. Then I sat there for like 4 hours just chatting away in Spanish with Robert and his sister and parents, which was pretty awesome because I got to practice Spanish, but also because who spends a Saturday afternoon just chatting without even looking at their phone anymore? Especially for 4 hours. It's so rare, and it was so great. So that went on until about 8:30, when we left to go eat more tapas and drink more wine. Roberto pretty much just took me from one tapas bar to the next, snacking on things, until we finished up with a gin and tonic at a hip, little local bar at 1am, and went home to sleep for like 5 hours.
Sunday we woke up pretty much in time to catch a train to Madrid and meet up with a couple of his friends, then go eat more tapas and have a vermouth. Apparently vermouth is a super Spanish thing these days. Roberto was telling me about how there's a bunch of artisanal vermouth being made all over Spain, and all the cool kids are drinking it, so we had quite a few over the weekend. Anyway, so it was vermouth and snack, then back to the airport for me. Which, considering the weekend, could not go well. My flight was delayed 30 minutes, we circled around Munich for an hour before landing, my ride wasn't there when I arrived, and after he did show up, we had to wait another hour for someone else to come join us. It was not fun. At all. But it was worth it. It was great to see Roberto after not having seen him for a few months, and to meet the family, and to actually try all the amazing food and drink his home is famous for which he's been bragging about for years. Also, it is super cheap. We walked all over Valladolid eating tapas and drinking wine, probably at about 7 different places, and I did not even spend 100 Euros. The last place we had 5 tapas, all award winning, one even having won the best tapa of the year back in like 2015, along with 4 glasses of wine, and it only cost 18 Euro. So insane. So in summary, horrible travel, but amazing weekend, even if it was cut nearly in half due to delays.
And now a bit of music. Today it's great new music from not new artists who I maybe didn't pay attention to or wasn't a huge fan of before. The first of whom is Parquet Courts. These guys have been around for years and have a bunch of albums, the latest of which, Wide Awake!, just came out in May. The title track from the album and one of the early singles is absolutely fantastic. So much fun. So I listened to the album. And I did not like it. But this song! So good!
And then we have Young Fathers. These guys are more interesting. They're a Scottish rap group who won the Mercury Prize in 2014, for their debut album. At the time I didn't really get it. I heard the album, but I was not a huge fan. And then a year later they put out another album, and again I listened, but wasn't too impressed. But now, they've put out their third album, Cocoa Sugar, back in March, and that one is amazing. Really a fantastic album all around. Maybe in my top 10 this year. And it has a ton of amazing songs. For example, In My View.
Good stuff, right? And then there's Toy, which I think is the first single I heard off the album, and I really liked it right away, which surprised me since I was never really impressed with them before. But this year, they seem to have gotten it right. Something about that third album.
I'm getting ready to head to Germany tonight, but wanted to get in a bit of music for the week. Nothing to really tell you today. My week has been busy at work, as it always is when I'm trying finish stuff up before a business trip. Last week I was in Xiamen, which I wrote some stuff about. That was fun. Weekend was a good mix of being productive and being active and being a bit lazy but less than usual which felt nice.
Oh! Here's an exciting thing! I managed to get a Japanese book on my Kindle, after years of trying, and I got it with a Japanese English dictionary, which means when I don't know a word and I click it, I get the pronunciation and translation. It is amazing. It makes me so happy. I've wanted to do this for years and finally talked to a friend who does it, and got it to work. Basically, I needed to sign up for an amazon.co.jp account, which meant using a friend's address and phone number in Japan, and navigating the site in Japanese, and registering my Japanese account on my Kindle, not my English one. But it worked. So it's all good. And I'm so happy. And now I have a book I've started reading which a friend recommended, about a grasshopper researcher who goes to Mauritania to solve a grasshopper infestation which is leading to drought and famine. I honestly have no clue if it is fiction or non-fiction. Yet. I'll get back to you on that.
Anyway, so yeah, work is fine, week is fine, life is fine, and now I'm going to Germany for a couple weeks. But before that, music. International music. From 3 artists today.
First up is Jawhar. He put out a new album, Winrah Marah, in April, and it popped up somewhere. I don't know where. But I heard one of his songs, and it is fantastic. This guy is from Tunis, and makes Arab folk rock, which he sings all in Arabic. I have no idea what he's singing about, but I love it. Reminds me of Palatine, who I wrote about earlier this year, who I also have no idea what they're singing about. He actually has an older album also, which I should go listen to, but for now I've only heard Winrah Marah. It's a great album, all of which is worth listening to multiple times, but I'm going to leave you with Soutbouk today.
Now we're moving into some interesting cross-over territory with the next song, which comes courtesy of Angelique Kidjo. This woman is a legend in African music. She just might be on of the most famous African musicians on the planet. And generally, she's pretty great. But she's just put out this album called Remain in Light, and the entire album is a track for track cover of The Talking Heads' album Remain in Light from 1980, in Angelique Kidjo's West African style. Now already this is an interesting idea, so despite not being a massive Talking Heads fan, I really wanted to listen. And it is fun. And of course I was curious about the original, so I found a playlist which lines it up track by track. The interesting thing is that the original actually lends itself really well to West African music. I don't think I would have ever heard it if I just listened to the Talking Heads, but side by side, there's already some elements that seem to be influenced by African music. Pretty fascinating. And the best track, by far, is Once In A Lifetime. I'm sure you've heard the original, even if you don't know it, but once you hear the cover, you'll know what song it is. And you'll probably do what I do and listen over and over.
In a similar vein as Angelique Kidjo covering The Talking Heads, we have a track from Thomas Bartlett & Nico Muhly's new collaboration, an album titled Peter Pears: Balinese Ceremonial Music. I previously knew the name Nico Muhly, but not Thomas Bartlett, but the album was on a new releases playlist I follow and I was intrigued by the album name. So I looked it up, and was even more intrigued, and had to go listen. Basically, there was this guy Colin McPhee who was an ethnomusicologist and worked in Indonesia back in the 1930s. He brought back the traditional music he heard in Indonesia and started creating world music back in the US. Now, Thomas Bartlett and Nico Muhly were inspired by him and wrote some songs which incorporate his transcriptions of traditional Balinese ceremonial music. It will not be at all what you expect, but it is beautiful and super interesting. As an album, it's a bit boring by the end, but definitely worth a listen, and definitely worth making it on the blog. So I'll share Dominic with you as today's last track.
I don't know why it took me almost a week to write about Florence + The Machine's new album, High As Hope. It came out last Friday, and I was literally refreshing Spotify once an hour at the office to see when I would be able to listen to it. This woman is incredible and everything she makes is magic. That's my general opinion, anyway. She's basically my Beyonce. And with her new album, she has not disappointed.
She'd already put out 3 singles, Sky Full Of Song (which was on the blog previously), and then Hunger (which I thought was on the blog but wasn't but will be now!) and Big God before the album. So as promised, here's Hunger just because it's amazing and was the first official single from the album and I thought I'd already done this and don't know how I didn't.
I mean, how could you hear that song weeks ago and not be excited for the album? Honestly, I thought How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful was her worst album. Still good, but over the course of her 3 previous albums, I thought she continuously went downhill. But in her defense, Lungs is an incredible album. So hard to follow up. Well, Hunger had me thinking we'd be on the right track.
So then the album came out, and I put it on, and I was welcomed with June. Which, despite being already excited for the album thanks to the previously released tracks, far exceeded any expectations I had. June is such an incredible song, both musically and thematically. I mean, come on Florence. Starts out simple, with Florence's beautiful vocals and a bit of plucked string, and then just builds and builds to a massively wonderful crescendo. Imagine how good this song would be live. Insane. And with everything that is wrong with the world right now, she's just giving us this beautiful message of love and hope. Smart lady. She's right. Sadly, love is an act of defiance now. So listen to her and hold on to each other.
Then we go through this wonderful album, and towards the end we come to probably the best song, The End Of Love. Sad title, but as Florence put it, it's actually positive. It's supposed to mark the end of a needy, desperate kind of love and a maturation. Also, it's gorgeous. Those vocal harmonies on the chorus? (insert all kinds of emoji here). And I love that surprising little bit of keyboardy synthesized stringy thing on the second verse. Whenever I listen on headphones, I think I'm hearing something outside the song, and it's jarring and shocking, but then once I realize what's going on it's perfect. This whole song is perfect. The album is damn near perfect. The only problem is I can't buy it yet because I'm waiting for the Deluxe version cause I need more. Anyway, juts go listen over and over and over like I have. It's been easily a dozen times in under a week. I'm sure you'll do the same.
