Linda Thompson: Fashionably Late

Linda Thompson has just released a brand new album, "Versatile Heart", I know, but by now I like her comeback (after almost 20 years) with this "Fashionably Late" in 2002 so much more, although there may be no Antony singing with her but there is still one song composed by (a very young then) Rufus Wainwright (in "Paint & Powder Beauty") and there are playing guests as ex husband Richard and Fairport Convention veterans Jerry Donohue, Dave Mattacks and Dave Pegg. Along with Van Dyke Parks, Danny Thompson, and son Teddy Thompson.
Pitchfork guys seem to think that "Versatile..." is such a great effort, yeah, but I can't help but find it a bit too mellow, and...may I dare say it...? Boring, there it is. On the contrary "Fahionably" sounds fresh, and not over confident (unlike the previous one), and though she probably will never be as good a songwriter as Richard was in his thirties (what the hell: he himself isn't that good now...but it is, to say the least, almost impossible to top masterpieces like "I want to see the bright lights tonight" and "Shoot out the lights", everybody's aware of that) in this LP she performs songs such as the last one "Dear old man of mine" where she almost makes it: I can clearly sense the sterness in her voice, and I have many reasons to think that this is probably her "The end of the rainbow". Why? Because even though the song is about a husband (to be more precise: an ex husnband, Richard) and not about a son, and it it is somehow gentle while the other one was mean, still it has a similar tempo, a similar construction (mostly downward melodic and harmonic patterns), and share the same seriousness, the same "These are my definitive words on the matter"kind of feeling.
Grab it.

Nice review @ Rounder.com
More @ Metacritic
Linda @ Youtube
Linda interviewed in 2002 @ Womanrock

Fashionably Late

Ice Cube talks

Ice Cube: AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted

I'm a bit in a old school hip hop revival, so I went back to the days when Ice Cube was "AmeriKKA's most wanted", but not from Hollywood PR agents...
Despite his most recent career (does anyone remember what he and Public Enemy sang in Burn Hollywood burn? Well, I wish at least he did) his early one was full of wonders, being "AmeriKKKa's most wanted" the greatest... Check out wiki.

AmeriKKKa's most wanted

Bjork: S/t (1977)

I'm going through a Bjork renaissance, and re-discovering Volta (I didn't find it so appealing nor interesting the first time around), and it is merely by chance that I have found some (very) old stuff from her discography, like this 1977 LP she recorded when she wasn't 12 yet: a true gem if you consider that it has been edited and released only in Iceland (and I don't think there are many recent re-issues).
It is obvious that this Bjork cannot be compared to the later genious, the ever new saviour of modern pop music, yet it is funny to listen to the indian extravaganza in the intro of the first song, or to the cover versions of the Beatles' Fool on the hill and Stevie Wonder's Your kiss is sweet.
Plus, there's cover of the LP, that baby Bjork meets George Harrison meets whatever you may considered camp.

PS Click the option "Keep broken files" before unpacking it.

Bjork

Now there's a alternative link for the Live Munich recording in case you have some problems unpacking it.

The Go-Betweens: Live Munich Br2 Radio 27.5.99

It's plain to see that I just can't get enough of The Go-Betweens' live bootlegs (and I hope you don't mind), so here's another one: a radio session in munich (still as an acoustic duo), hence a very fine quality recording bootleg, featuring 13 tracks, lots of which are taken from Forster's and McLennan's solo career (a perfect match with the Intermission post, ain't it?) and with a curious obscure song from the two australians, Suicide at home.
And if you long for more GB's stuff...don't dorry: there's still more to come.

PS If you have some problems unpacking the zip file click "Keep broken files"

Tracklist:

1-The devil's eye
2-Part Company
3-Haven't I been a fool
4-Baby stones
5-Suicide at home
6-Dive for your memory
7-Right here
8-Spring rain
9-Clouds
10-Bye bye pride
11-Easy come easy go
12-121
13-Was there anything I could do

Live Munich Br2 Radio 27.5.99
Live Munich Br2 Radio 27.5.99 (Alternative link)

The Go-Betweens: Live acoustic in Vienna 2000

No doubt that the Go-Betweens are maybe my favourite band these days, so I was more than just happy when I found this (short alas) acoustic concert of theirs some time ago. I had been looking for more GB bootlegs for months and finally I took a hold on this. Moreover I have always wanted to listen to some acoustic live recordings of the Go-Betweens since I consider the Acoustic Sessions in their "That Striped Sunlight Sound" DVD just great: McLennan and Forster as an acoustic duo have some true magic working on (by the way, has anyone heard of, or has got some bootlegs of one of their acoustic concerts as a duo in the nineties? That would be terrific), and that's why I'm so glad to have these tracks: it is only Forster and McLennan on stage (during some 2000 tour, probably just before the release of their "The friends of Rachel Worth" comeback CD) playing some songs from "Friends Of..." but also some true GB classic as This girl black girl, Cattle and cane, and Bye bye pride (which, without "Talullah"'s heavy 80's production is a hell of a song).

And the recording quality is very good.

Here is the tracklist:

1-He lives my life

2-Orpheus beach

3-This girl balck girl

4-Bye bye pride

5-When she sang about angels

6-Spring rain

7-Surfing magazines

8-Heart and home

9-Cattle and cane

10-People say

11-Head full of steam

12-Love goes on

13-Danger in the past

Want more?

The Go-Betweens @ wiki

2 Free live songs @ GB's website's library

The Go-Betweens' Archive

Live Acoustic

The Triffids: In The Pines (Reissue)

Some months ago I posted this same album, I know, but now on my hands I have the brand new reissue, a beautiful one, with several bonus tracks, so I've decided to upload this one too. But in case you do not them I guarantee you that the Triffids were one of the best bands (some could call them a post punk band, and yeah, they'd be quite right, except that the triffids had a violin and a pedal steel guitar among their instruments, which wasn't very common at the time) of the eighties, and they shared the stage with one of my fave bands, the Go-Betweens; in fact they were fellow aussies. "In the pines" was their third LP, released shortly after their peak, the masterpiece "Born Sandy devotianal", and unlike that one In the pines is laid back, somehow quieter, but always mesmeric.

Listen to the waltz of In the pines (but with a melody à la Leadbelly), or to Born Sandy Devotional (curiously both carry the name of an album but Born...should have been on their previous one but didn't make it), or to Kathy Knows. They should be enogh to convince you. And in case you need more go see the great post written here, where you can also download some glorious bootleg tapes (go ahead! Do it!)

In the pines

Death Proof OST

Need to say anything?

Death Proof

And now I've re-uploaded also disc 2.

I've just re-uploaded the link to disc 1. It should be fine now.

Robert Forster - Grant McLennan : Intermission (The Best Of The Solo Years)

I have just bought this yesterday and I am as happy as a man can be (for buying a CD). The Go-Betweens have been much like my band in these last years, meaning that I have listened to their songs lots and lots of times, so many times that I can easily recall each one of them only by hearing 2 seconds of it, so many times that I must have learnt by heart almost their whole repertoire. In a few words: what I used to do before the internet revolution, before "listening to music" meant listening to a new album a couple of times and then -very often at least- lose it in your hard-drive or in some CD/DVD-R. And that's the reason why I have decided to buy this one: to give back something, to show (to myself, I suppose) how important Forster and McLennan (The Go-Betweens' founding members and writers) have been to me.


Robert Forster - Baby Stones

It still makes me sad to think of how eager I was to wait for another GB's album after "Oceans Apart" and after the last (and only, alas) concert of theirs I had seen and then the shock of hearing the news of McLennan's death last year. And yeah, I know Forster...oh, what the heck (as he would say)...I know Bobby has started working on Grant's demos to give birth to the album they both had planned to do, but I find it hard to believe a new Go-Betweens' album can truly be called so without Grant's voice (the demos, as you can read in this interview here, have no words), so "Intermission", the best of their works as solo artists during the GB's intermission (most people would call it break-up) in the nineties could be the last release with Grant's voice, his beautiful, melodious voice.


Grant McLennan - Easy come, easy go

I'll stop now because I'm getting too emotional, but trust me on this: if you have loved Bobby's and Grant's work go (run!) and buy "Intermission". The songs (more Grant's ones than Bobby's, I have to admit) are great, and then the packaging is simply awesome (two separate discs, and a 28-page lyric book at a very low price).

The Go-Betweens @ Wiki

Intermission Disc 1 -Forster
Intermission Disc 2 -McLennan

Robert Forster - Grant McLennan : Intermission (The Best Of The Solo Years)

Concert Vault

I'm back from a little hiatus just to tell you of a great site I've just bumped into: Concert Vault (from now on you will be able to find the link here on the right) allows you to listen to dozens of concert on streaming (you just have to subscribe first, but that's quick and easy). Examples? I'm now listening to Pink Floys live at Fillmore East, April 29th, 1970. Highly recommended.

Carla Bruni: Quelqu'un m'a dit

Initially I had some about Carla Bruni: former mannequin, beautiful, kind of trendy. It all just didn't seem my cup of tea. So I first snobbed her first LP, but then when the second one got released I read a very good review about it (it had comparisons with Bob Dylan, old bluesmen and alikes), so I decided to give her the benefit of doubt.
And she did surprised me.
I've listened to "No promises"for a long time before getting back to "Quelqu'un m'a dit" (mainly becuase her first LP is in french and I 'm not very used to french music, except Sebastien Tellier and some old ones, like Jacques Brel), but I have to admit it got to me anyway: simple (and sometimes bluesy, sometimes more french-chansonnier-like) chord progression, most of the times with arpeggios, tender vocal melodies (and if you don't like her hoarse voice, well, that's easy to understand, but still what she does with it is haunting, charming).
Here is also the video of my favourite one:

Carla Bruni @ Wiki
Carla Bruni's Lyrics

Quelqu'un m'a dit

The Dream Syndicate: The Complete Live At Raji's

This is one of my fave live recordings ever from a band that I absolutely love: Dream Syndicate's "Complete live at Raji's". I remember buying the original CD release a few years ago (not a long time after having bought their first LP, the milestone "Days of wine and roses" for just...not more than 6 euros, I think), and being just blown away by the quality of the songwriting and by the massive electric guitars. They sort of feedbacked in my mind for weeks...

The start of Still holding on to you is the kind of thing that makes you feel like grabbing an electric guitar (and makes you also feel as if it was the most important thing on earth), while another favourite number of mine has always been Merritville, possibly one of the best electric ballads I've ever listened to.
Plus, this complete edition features some great cover versions (the classic See that my grave is kept clean, and Dylan's All along the watchtower) and two more tracks from their first album (When you smile and Tell me when it's over).
For more stuff about DS go see Steve Wynn's site: it's loaded with tabs, lyrics, mp3's; it is really worth visiting it if you are fans.

Live at Raji's - Disc 1
Live at Raji's - Disc 2

X : More Fun In The New World

I'm in X-period of sort. Kind of. (I have also been listening a lot to John Doe's new album: maybe even better than the previous one). So I've uploaded "More fun...", a very underrated LP: when it got out many punk purists called it too mainstram, too commercial, but to me it has a Clash-like sound (which is definetely a good thing). It is maybe their "Combat rock": an album that contains many of their most straightforwarded songs, and a few attempts to the charts (yeah, I know, it's a shame for punk rockers...), but it is also a work (as most rock albums that music purists dislike) that puts together what is punk with what is (wasn't?) not: disco, 50's rock, country... Doesn't this sound very "thesedayish"?

And this is True Love Part 2 (with all it its beautiful pastiche medley in the end: disco, Elvis...)'s Video:




PS A great live of theirs in the surprise link.

More Fun In The New World

Younger Son

And this is a band of friends of mine you can listen to on the mp3 flash player here on the right (or you can go see their site here). If you like blues-rock stuff (like Jon Spencer etc) they might be your thing.

And now in italian...

Gli Younger Son sono un simpatico combo rock-blues che bazzicca dalle parti di Verona (ma non solo), quindi se abitate/vivete/girate/avete donne/avete uomini da queste parti potete fare un salto sul loro sito (il link rimarrà tra i preferiti qui a destra) per vagliare la possibilità di assistere a un loro concerto.

Se siete come l'apostolo Tommaso (quello scettico, su, non fate quella faccia lì...) potete sempre cliccare sul lettore mp3 in streaming qui sopra per ascoltare un loro pezzo, okay? Per altri (da ascoltare/scaricare) ne troverete sul loro sito.

The White Stripes: Icky Thump (ripped from radio broadcast)

For those who can't wait for the last White Stripes' record to hit the record stores here is the leak, ripped from a radio broadcast. Of course this is no state of the art sound quality recording (still most of the songs are a bearable listen) but yet you can get an idea out of it.

And the video of the single is down here.

Great stuff, btw.

Icky Thump

X : Los Angeles

X were a LA. punk band, and an excellent one, formed in 1977 and "Los Angeles" is their cult debut abum (and one of the '77 punk milestones).

I must have listened to it tons of times and I never get tired, so I have to say that it stands the test of time just fine (and also me aging could have affected its value but it didn't) and Johnny hit and run paulene is still one of my fave punk songs (see the video below).

Johnny hit and run Paulene - Video

X @ wiki

Los Angeles