Back to Poland

Oops! I ran out of time to get a post in today. Although I want to keep this blog going with as few interruptions as possible, life keeps getting in the way.

So today's post will be a continuation of an old post on a Polish group called Blue Cafe.

Here's another great song from their album Ovosho. It gives you a little glimpse into a different , but equally attractive side of the group.

1. Blue Cafe - My Road (3.65 MB; 128 kbps MP3)

Got My Mojo Working

Last year, when I was in Australia, I stopped at a magazine shop and picked up a special Beatles edition of MOJO magazine that came with a free CD that covered the entire Revolver album.

Would you consider Revolver to be a meditative experience? Well, on this CD the artists took the songs from the album and turned them into surrealistic, contemplative experiences. I really like the album and it's unusual spin on Beatles' classics.

What does it sound like? Here are a couple of excellent examples. To me, if you can take Yellow Submarine and turn it into a deeply thoughtful exercise in brooding melancholy, you have achieved a pretty high level of creative genius. Kudos to Chris Eckman (of The Walkabouts) for this unusual cover. This will remind you a great deal of The Door's The End. You can check out Chris's work on the web site of his group The Walkabouts.

The other selection here is Neal Casal's I am Only Sleeping. Again, I can imagine early Pink Floyd jamming with Jim Morrison on this song. Fascinating. You can visit Neal Casal's web site to learn more of his music. You can find this album cheap on eBay.

Buy Chris Eckman's solo album on Amazon here.

Or, The Walkabouts on Amazon here.

Buy Neal Casal on Amazon here.

1. Chris Eckman - Yellow Submarine (4.33 MB; 128kbps MP3)

2. Neal Casal - I Am Only Sleeping (2.62 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Jangling Guitars for Years Around The Sun

When I started this blog a few weeks ago, my goal was simply to learn a little about blogging as a form of word-of-mouth communication as well as share my love of more "unusual" music (that is, stuff you don't hear every day when you turn on the radio). I never expected that this blog would (so quickly) help me discover new music and artists -- something I love to do (as I mentioned in my post about bar hopping).

I was surprised recently with an email from the marketing coordinator of an artist management company that represents a band called Years Around The Sun with an attached MP3 file from the band as well as an offer to send me their debut CD Introstay. The moment I heard it, I decided that this was my kind of music. Catchy melody and toe-tapping rhythm. While it's possible the lyrics may be profound (as I've mentioned before, I am not really a "lyrics man"), I couldn't tell. I listen to music for entertainment and not some intellectual stimulation. This was a song with lush and layered sounds surrounding a nice hook. As I said, my kind of music.

I would like to assure blog readers that I am NOT paid for the review. They sent me the song, I liked it and decided it is worth sharing with all of you. I don't know if any of you know me well enough to trust that I won't feature anything I am sent by any band or company that I don't genuinely like myself. But, given my eclectic taste in music, the featured music here will span many genres.

The first song is a single Heart Delay which, as I said, will get your toe tapping. This is the first song I heard from this group. The second song linked below is a selection from their debut CD called Sinclair. I had a hard time picking a song off their Introstay CD to feature here. I didn't like the opening track (Align), but found Dead Man's Sea to be very catchy. But then, when I put my headphones on, I seemed to prefer Dry Lake Bed. Probably the easiest to like on the first listen is Sinclair. Sounds like a single should sound. Soft Soul has a funky groove to it that would work great in the evening with a glass of wine in your hand. Both Northfork and Warm Jets are great songs. For some reason Warm Jets sounds a little Beatlesque to me. The sound on most of the songs is quite similar with jangly guitars and synths leading to a nice melody and a steady beat. Overall, the vocals are somehow reminiscent of a British group, but their site seems to suggest they're all Americans. Let me know if you get the same sense of a "British accent" when you hear these songs. In fact, all these songs remind me a lot of Evermore who I featured recently on this blog. Maybe it's my imagination.

You can find the band web site here (including tour info). And their CD cover looks suspiciously like the Jantar Mantar ancient astronomical lab I used to pass by frequently when I lived in New Delhi! Like many independent bands today, you can hook up with their MySpace page. Of course, I urge those of you who like these songs to buy their CD here. After having heard the songs, how wrong can you go for ten bucks?

1. Years Around The Sun - Heart Delay (Deleted on artist's request)
2. Years Around The Sun - Sinclair (Deleted on artist's request)

10cc of Reggae-Rock

Since I seem to be on a roll here with my nostalgic tunes, here's another one that stems from my college days in India. A cousin of mine owned this album by 10cc. Since I considered this cousin of mine extremely cool, I had no choice but to like what he liked.

One song that was a favorite of his was Dreadlock Holiday by 10cc. If you listen to it, you'll see that it builds on the typically catchy reggae beat by adding some nice harmonies. It also has the word "cricket" in the lyrics, which for some reason, I always liked (I know this is all strange like a surreal dream, but you've got to realize that I'm grabbing at fragments of my memory here).

You can find the 10cc catalog on Amazon here. This song came from the album Bloody Tourists that you can find here. For a start, I strongly recommend this greatest hits collection available here.

You are all savvy enough to find out more info on this band at WIkipedia if you're interested, so I won't go into detail here in the post.

10cc - Dreadlock Holiday (6.92 MB; 192 kbps MP3)

A Fine Hero

An unexpected benefit of blogging is when it helps me discover new music that I otherwise would never have found. Recently, I was contacted by Dinesh Lalvani in Dubai about a song from his group The Fine. The music is a mixture of rock, electronica and strong vocals from fellow group member Claire Murphy.

They have a 4-song EP done that is available for purchase online. I understand they're working on a full album. You can find more information on Dinesh & Claire on their site at http://thefine.net/ which I urge you to visit. You can also head to their MySpace spot.

The first song featured here is Hero which couples a rock beat with some beautiful guitar work and Claire's clear vocals. It has a catchy melody and the combination of rock and acoustic ballad that I like so much (as you may have guessed from the selections of Triumph and Uriah Heep that were featured on this blog earlier).

If you like the song, why don't you add a comment to this post and I'm sure Dinesh and/or Claire will respond to any of your compliments or criticisms! Let them know if you want to hear more and maybe they'll send me another song for me to post here.

1. The Fine - Hero (4.69 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Quoth the Raven "Evermore"

Okay, okay. I know that that raven really quoth "Nevermore," but then I wouldn't be able to use Poe to introduce my band of the day - Evermore.

If you'll look through the blog I made of my Australia trip last year, you'll see my mention of the opening act for Split Enz that I thought was amazing. Evermore is a New Zealand - Australian band that is made up of the "Hume Brothers." When I saw them open for Split Enz last year, I was struck by the richness of the sound this three-piece band was able to create. It was a very full sound and the drummer for the band (who looked to be all of fifteen) was spectacular. I attended the concert with a guy who has played in a band for years (perhaps I'll feature his band on here some time) and he raved about the drummer, so it is not just my uninformed opinion that this kid was great. The songs featured here are all from this three-piece band and should give you an idea of how impressive their concert set was.

Evermore released their Dreams album in 2004 and their second album Real Life in 2006. I picked up a copy of their first single from the Real Life album during the Enz concerts last year and was impressed enough to buy a copy of their Dreams album. Although these songs have done well in Australia, I'm sure many of you reading this blog have never heard Evermore. They claim to be influenced by The Police (Synchronicity), Pink Floyd, and Silverchair.

As usual, if you like them, buy their Dreams album on Amazon.com here. The Real Life album is available only as an import so is a lot more pricey on Amazon here. From what I heard, these kids are young and will probably be heard more from in the future. Just remember, you heard them first here.

The first track is from the single I picked up in Australia last summer, Running. It is from the Real Life album. The second track here is a single from their debut album. Find out more about the band on their Wikipedia page or on their MySpace page. Of course, if you like these tracks, you should also visit their official web site.

1. Evermore - Running (4.03 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Evermore - It's Too Late (3.59 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Free Steadman NOW!

Several years ago (honestly, it was at the turn of this century!), when the idea of bands releasing their own music on the Internet was a completely new phenomenon, I ran across a band completely by accident on MP3.Com. In those days, bands could create an account and upload their music and then create a "space" on their site to sell their stuff.

One of the many songs I downloaded in those days was by this group called Steadman and this song called Life of Leisure was absolutely one of the catchiest songs I had ever heard. I was just convinced that this band was on the verge of really hitting it big. The song sounded exactly like the hits that was getting a lot of airplay in those days (Blues Traveler, Semisonic, Everclear, etc.) and I couldn't imagine how it could be long before some savvy marketer picked up this single and got it a ton of airplay. I remember being excited and telling friends about this band I had "discovered" so I could tell them all "I told you so" once the band became a household name.

Well, as far as I know, it never happened. I still love this song and think it has a catchy melody and great clear vocals. For anyone out there wondering what kind of music turns me on, here's a model! When I was creating this post, I did some searching online to find out what happened to Steadman. Of course, at Amazon, not only can you find the album with this song, Loser Friendly but also their newest album, Revive (released in 2003). Apparently they're an English band who has gained some fame after being featured on Smallville. Wikipedia provides more details about their current whereabouts and also clarifies that their sound is influenced by Oasis and Radiohead (shows what I know in my musical comparisons!) Most interestingly, I discovered from Wikipedia that Steadman got disgruntled with the "big label" business and have released all their albums and off-cuts online as free digital downloads with a creative commons license (feel free to download and distribute). Now if that isn't a reason to love this band, I don't know what gets you going. Please visit their site here and download anything you want! As they say, they want you to.

1. Steadman - Life of Leisure (5.376 MB; 160 kbps MP3)

Fountains of Wayne are Never Wet

The music savvy among you probably are scoffing at the idea that people haven't heard of Fountains of Wayne. After all, they're gaining in popularity and may even have gotten some fair airplay recently. Again, my 11-year-old son (who I use as the barometer of what's "current") knew who Fountains of Wayne were and gave me the title of a few of their songs.

But, this CD was sent to me by a friend of mine some time agop and I found most of the songs instantly catchy and likeable. The one song that grabbed me and stayed around in my head all day was "Hat and Feet." I challenge you to listen to this song twice and not find yourself humming it all day.

Great midwest pop. You can find all their CDs on Amazon.com here. The CD from which I got these two selections is Utopia Parkway and you can find that CD here. Enjoy!

1. Fountains of Wayne - Hat and Feet (2.78 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Fountains of Wayne - Red Dragon Tattoo (3.23 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Your Next Boyfriend - Cam Waters

After suggesting in my last post that music is universal and that melody is paramount, I'm going to do an about face. If you focus on catchy melodies and beat, you miss the emotion conveyed by the lyrics. Now, I'll admit that I'm not a "lyrics man." I almost never pay attention to song lyrics (about the only album I know all the lyrics to is Jesus Christ Superstar). But people who write their own songs generally seem to have something real to say - in a clever way. For example, read this lyric from Cam Waters' "Like Normal People Do."

And he said let's go to the living room and turn on the TV
And I won't speak to you and you won't even look at me
Then we'll be talking to each other like normal people do

Now isn't that a clever way to make a statement? Beautiful!

One of the things I enjoyed doing is (when possible) to pop into bars and listen to some local band. The best part of traveling in this country is that you can often find excellent singers in the smallest and pokiest bars and restaurants. These tend to be people who genuinely love the music and perform for peanuts. It just offers them a release for their pent up emotions. These are not the voices you're going to find on American Idol (Thank God for that!), but the music tends to be heartfelt. I'm not talking of the cover bands. I'm talking of the independent musicians - singers and songwriters who use music to express themselves - who don't perform to make a buck. Some are awful, some you feel sorry for, some are decent, some are great, but all are genuine.

So, I was in Rochester, Minnesota several years ago and stopped in a bar with Cam Waters. Not the voice that'll win awards, but he seemed to be enjoying himself while pouring his heart into his singing. I had such a great time that I could not resist buying his CD. Here are a couple of selections of pure American folk-blues from Mr. Cam Waters. The first song has simple, spontaneous lyrics with a catchy tune and the second also seems to have been written after a personal experience!

You can find Cam Waters' CDs on his web site http://www.camwaters.com. Both the selections here are from his album Shoetown. Unfortunately, when I checked his "gigs" page, it was empty. Sad.

1. Cam Waters - Your Next Boyfriend (2.01 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Cam Waters - Never Have Been Satisfied (3.11 MB; 128kbps MP3)

French In My Flesh!

Hopefully that morbid title will get you intrigued enough to try this band. When I was in France earlier this year, my brother recommended this band when I asked him a sample of local rock music. I listened to it in the car a couple of times and decided to go buy the CDs of this band myself. The band is an (apparently popular) French rock band called KYO. I was able to pick up a reasonably inexpensive set of two of their CDs at a Carrefour. Of course, as usual, I find I could have bought it Amazon a lot cheaper. Here's a link to the 2 CD set.

Even my 12-year old son loves this band and he often voluntarily puts this CD in the player. Catchy rock in the vein of Semisonic, The Wallflowers, and Maroon 5. Truly an indication of the importance of melody in music - none of us understand a word of what's being sung, but truly enjoy the songs. Here are a couple of selections from their CD 300 Lésions. You can find their debut album on Amazon here.

By the way, I have no idea how accurate this is, but the song title Dans Ma Chair was translated by Google Translator as "In The Flesh" Someone with a better understanding of French, please correct me if this is completely off base.

Meanwhile, enjoy "Contact" and "In The Flesh"!

1. Kyo - Contact (3.34 MB; 128 kbps MP3)
2. Kyo - Dans Ma Chair (3.09 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Justin Roth - Singer, Songwriter

I teach at a University in the business school and am fortunate to have musicians as students every now and then. One of my former students is Justin Roth who I would describe as a troubadour (he may object, in which case I'd be happy to alter this description). While I enjoyed his first album, I think his 2003 album Shine is a particular joy to listen to. I think it is well recorded, well balanced, and I also think his voice has developed to have a better tonal quality than on his first album.

Although I missed him on his last visit to town, I did get the album and have listened to it many times since then. Both the songs I am featuring here are from Shine. However, the "fun" frolic titled "Dead Horse Trampoline" is not written by Justin (almost all the other songs on the album are written by him). I challenge you to listen to Dead Horse Trampoline without smiling.

You can find out more about Justin here. His touring schedule is here. Please buy his CDs here.

1. Justin Roth - Dead Horse Trampoline (2.85 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Justin Roth - Pull (3.21 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Triumph in Melodic Rock

Moving from one extreme to the other, lets go from Broadway show tunes to classic rock. A brilliant band that masterfully blended solid guitar rock with orchestral themes was the Canadian band Triumph. One of my first introductions to this band was from a widely distributed vinyl audiophile sampler called the Maxell Rock Sampler. That record included as its opening tune a sweeping, rocking, melodic, classic rock masterpiece medley Blinding Light Show/Moonchild. This eight-odd minute movement was breathtaking not only for its sonic quality but also for its extraordinary blend of classic rock with classical guitar and string instruments. The drums are tight and clear and the recording of the classical guitar interlude is heavenly.

Enough gushing, now you must be anxious to hear the tune. Although I did transfer this from my Maxell Rock Sampler vinyl record, there were a couple of loud pops and some minor distortion that I could not eliminate from my recording. So, I got a copy of this spectacular song from a CD. You can buy the whole CD from Amazon here. It really is worth it. Most guitar enthusiasts are familiar with the absolutely brilliant picking of Triumph's guitarist Rik Emmett. I strongly recommend his albums (here's a list from Amazon), especially the fiendishly addictive Absolutely. Perhaps I'll post my favorite song from that album (Drive Time) here in a later post.

Here's a recommendation: Listen to this LOUD. Close your eyes and imagine the classical guitar is being played right in front of you. And when the drums kick back in .... sheer joy!

Triumph - Blinding Light Show/Moonchild (8 MB; 128kbps MP3)