The Bird And The Bee... And The Butterflies

Everything is perfect. Summertime is coming slowly but surely here in Europe and The Bird And The Bee will be soon among us during one of those lazy days when we will be laying on the grass under in the sun.
Inara George, the daughter of Lowell George – yes, THE Lowell George from Little Feat! - and Greg Kurstin, alias The Bird And The Bee (California, USA) were in town yesterday evening for a short showcase to promote their self-title debut album to be released in Europe, or only in France, I don’t know, during summer 2007 (Blue Note Records/EMI Music France).
I don’t worry too much for them. The music they perform - when The Pipettes, Saint-Etienne and Portishead meet Doris Day – is producing a handful of singles (F*cking Boyfriend, I’m A Broken Heart, Because, Again And Again...) that will reach a large audience.

Web: thebirdandthebee.com
MySpace: myspace.com/thebirdandthebee

The Bird And The Bee - F*cking Boyfriend .mp3 via Selective Service.net
The Bird And The Bee - I'm A Broken Heart .mp3
Inara George - Fools In Love .mp3

Lowell George -20 Million Things .mp3

Little Feat - Long Distance Love .mp3

Montgomery Loves Zidane

The French lost the football world cup last year in Germany during an epic final game against Italy. I guess you remember, don’t you? Even if their team didn’t win the French people still consider that Zinedine Zidane “est le meilleur joueur du monde” (is the best player in the world). To convince us, just listen to what Montgomery says on Zzzzzzzz.
Montgomery is a quintet from Rennes (French Brittany) who just released their debut self-titled album on Naive Records (May 15). There you’ll hear a kaleidoscope of multiple sounds. I don’t know which direction they want to take… if they want to take one. “Imagine the Beach Boys playing tennis with Sonic Youth and Serge Gainsbourg as referee”, is what you can read on their MySpace.
My opinion: I will say that the album’s best tracks are Jeremy (also on MySpace) and Champagne who are perhaps more conventional but these beautifully-crafted songs show that Montgomery can create melodies that are both modest and deep. A promising French band.

Web: chez-montgomery.com
MySpace: myspace.com/chezmontgomery

Montgomery - zzzzzzzz .mp3 via lesinrocks.com

Bonus, also from Les Inrocks: Angil - Do Not Think .mp3

Jutta Koether - Metalist Moment

Prospective 1981-2004… Steven Parrino. Before (plus ou moins)… Andy Warhol, Electric Chairs, 1971. Bastard Creature… Michael Lavine, Courtney Love Kneeling, 1994. Metalist Moment… A 25 minutes performance by Jutta Koether member of Steven Parrino's Electrophilia…

Steven Parrino (bass guitar) and Jutta Koether (synth) construct music that becomes a megalith that collapses into a black hole. Since the mid-nineties, Electrophilia has been pushing the cause of the meta-extreme within music. Developing from performance works that Steven Parrino did in 1979, grinding two electric guitars into each other at high volume, Electrophilia becomes a black rite. Jutta, no stranger to Extreme performance art, joined Electrophilia in 2002. Steven Parrino died January 1, 2005.

Jutta Koether emerged from the art scene in Cologne. She is a noted painter, writer, rock and art critic, musician and performance artist, and her projects often interlace all of these assumed roles.
Kim Gordon and Jutta Koether regularly collaborate on installations and performance projects. Apart from being a founding member, bass player, vocalist and guitarist in the legendary alternative rock group Sonic Youth, Gordon has worked on numerous creative projects across many genres.

Kim Gordon & Jutta Koether - Reverse Karaoke (London, 2005). Film: Christabel Stewart via SHOWstudio.com

Her Noise A video on Ubu.com documenting the development of the Her Noise project between 2001 and 2005 and features interviews with artists including Diamanda Galas, Lydia Lunch, Kim Gordon, Jutta Koether, Peaches, Marina Rosenfeld, Kembra Pfhaler, Chicks On Speed, Else Marie Pade, Kaffe Matthews, Emma Hedditch, Christina Kubisch and the show's curators, Lina Dzuverovic and Anne Hilde Neset.

Bonus: Kim Gordon - We Are The Princesses .mp3

That was yesterday evening, the 'vernissage' of Steven Parrino’s retrospective that gathers nearly one hundred major works by the artist (in the Palais de Tokyo - La Marque Noire - May 24 to August 26, 2007).

More info: http://www.dogsbloodrising.org (thanks for the contribution!)

Tegan & Sara Confidence

Speaking about Neil Young, I just had a look at his label yesterday, Vapor Records, to see if there was any news about a forthcoming album from Tegan & Sara. Bingo! “The Quin Sisters have just finished their new album. Yep, FINISHED! It's in the can. The ladies spent most of the New Year in Portland with producer Chris Walla recording what is sure to be a Super Banger of a record. Heck, we loved the home demos so much we were ready to just put those out! We think this is the best music T&S have ever made.”
The new album from Tegan & Sara, The Con, will come out July 24, 2007. It will follow So Jealous, one of the very good surprises from 2004. Unfortunately, there are no mp3 available right now. Meanwhile, below, you can discover or rediscover three songs from So Jealous and one cover from The White Stripes.

Web: teganandsara.com
MySpace: myspace.com/teganandsara

Tegan & Sara - I Bet It Stung .mp3
Tegan & Sara - I Know I Know I Know .mp3
Tegan & Sara - Walking With A Ghost .mp3
The White Stripes - Walking With A Ghost .mp3 via Each Note Secure

Bonus, two members from the Vapor family:
Jonathan Richman - Not So Much .mp3
Jason Yates - She Runs .mp3

Coverclub - Neil Young EP

Sorry, I don’t speak Dutch... all I understood is that bands from Netherlands covered Neil Young songs for a Tribute EP called Coverclub (May 2007). All the songs are available now for free downloading here and you got everything you want to know about those bands (MySpace and so on) here.

Most of the covers are very enjoyable and I am happy that this time nobody played again Heart Of Gold.

Web: Coverclub

Ponoka - Pocahontas .mp3 (Neil Young cover)
Leine - A Man Needs A Maid .mp3 (Neil Young cover)

Neil Young - Old Man .mp3

Charalambides Are In Town

Charalambides, what a strange name again for a band!?! During an interview with Christina and Tom Carter for Ascent Magazine, Robyn Fadden explained that their name, pronounced Char-a-lam-ba-deez, the name of a former record shop customer but chosen for the way it looked and sounded, reflects the life of their music: “It was definitely intentional to have a name that didn’t bring to mind an object, that didn’t make the ‘band’ or music an object. Charalambides isn’t a thing; it isn’t an unchanging thing.” says Christina Carter.
Charalambides is a duo or a trio (it depends) from Texas. Since 15 years, they are creative musicians performing extended guitar and voice compositions and improvisations. The music from Charalambides is a collection of dreamy, kaleidoscopic drones, utilizing volume, space, silence, folk and psychedelia, and the scrape and hiss of steel on steel. Like Marcus Boon wrote in The Wire: "... here is a truly 21st century experimental ethnic music that explores quietness and stasis... in the same way that musicians in the second half of the 20th century discovered amplification, noise and speed."
Charalambides are in town tonight with Jana Hunter (web) and Tara Jane O’Neil (web). Don’t miss them if you’re around! More tour dates in Europe and Canada/US here.

Web: kranky.net/artists/charalambides
Web: wholly-other.com

Charalambides - Spring .mp3 via Plasticmusic
Charalambides - Rehearsal .mp3 via Plasticmusic
Charalambides - Two Birds .mp3

Jana Hunter - Valkyries .mp3 from There’s No Home (April 2007, Gnomonsong)
Jana Hunter - The New Sane Scramble .mp3 via Everything Is Fire

Tara Jane O'Neil - Poisoned Mine .mp3
Tara Jane O'Neil - Blue Light Room .mp3 from In Circles (2006 Touch and Go)

Photo: Laurent Orseau

Waiting For The Arrogants

You must be very humble to call yourself The Arrogants (a band formed in 1997 in Huntington Beach, California)…
According to band member Jon McFerson the name has its origins in professional wrestling. “Wrestler Rick "The Model" Martel's gimmick was to spray "arrogance" on his audience with an old style insecticide can. The word "arrogance" was written on the side of the can. Jon changed the spelling to "arrogants" and the name "The Arrogants" was born”. I like this kind of story.
Well, today, I just had a thought about this “dreampop” band. Since they released their promising first and only full-length album to date, You've Always Known When Best To Say Goodbye (Letter Box Records, October 2005), we had no news from them and I was wondering if they will give us a collection of new songs - I always care for a group who refers to Red House Painters, to Low, Mazzy Star or even Led Zeppelin. The answer is: nothing for the moment. Ok, I will wait.

Meanwhile, let’s enjoy some old mp3s from The Arrogants.

Web: arrogants.com
MySpace: myspace.com/thearrogants

The Arrogants - I Want You .mp3
The Arrogants - Don't Die Before Your Day .mp3
The Arrogants - Don't Be So Cynical .mp3
The Arrogants - Wishing Well .mp3

The Arrogants - Rock Of Ages .mp3

Loren Dent - Empires and Milk

You know that I am not someone who is listening to the same kind of music all the time – I think I proved it already here with this blog, Leaky Sparrow. I consider that there is a music for each moment of the day – and the night – and that there is a main one that follow you during each episode of your life. What I want to say in few words is that more and more now I enjoy soft electronica music, especially the one called “ambient” a name who points to music across a hugely diverse spectrum: from Erik Satie to Brian Eno who once defines it as music "designed to induce calm and space to think".
Loren Dent from Austin, Texas with his second release, Empires And Milk (Contract Killers Records, February 2007) creates a specific ambience that invites you during 77 minutes for a meditating instrumental journey that make me think of the earliest documentaries and movies from Wim Wenders: 3 American LPs (1969), Alice In The Cities (1974), Kings Of The Road (1976)… wandering, silence, few dialogues, black and white frame. If you want to check what I mean, the best is to listen to the mp3 below provided by CKI.
Contract Killers Intermedia/Records "is a label dedicated to the production and distribution of multimedia projects. CKI is composed of a roster of sound and visual artists who each contribute a unique gift to the world of intermedia".
Thanks to “Lyle” who mentioned Loren Dent in his comment here after my Eluvium album review.

Web: lorendent.com
MySpace: myspace.com/lorendentmusic

Loren Dent - Independence .mp3
Loren Dent - Love Song: Years Of Iron Static .mp3
Loren Dent - Screen Memories .mp3 from Love Versus Dirt (CD-R 2006)

Bonus: Anthony Romero - Untitled III .mp3 from Forrest Talks (CD-R 2007)

Elliott Murphy & Friends

This is the story of… someone who released his first LP in 1973, who published his 29th album last month, who lives in Paris since 17 years, who is touring Europe all year long and who loves to play cover songs with his old friends. This is the story of… Elliott Murphy (born in New York in 1949).
He once was supposed to be a new Bob Dylan but his idol is more Bruce Springsteen - the Boss played duet in one song from his album Selling The Gold (1995). He looks like Tom Petty and sings like Tom “Dylan” Petty.
In February, Elliott Murphy made a guest appearance with Iain Matthews during an Acoustic In Paris evening (read a review here). I personally missed that show but I guess Hervé Oudet will invite him again in the near future.

Web: elliottmurphy.com
MySpace: myspace.com/elliottmurphy

Elliott Murphy - 40 Days And 40 Nights .mp3 from Coming Home Again (Last Call Records – mars 2007)
Elliott Murphy - Deep Drunk In Love .mp3 from the recently released Stories of the Dogs tribute album (double CD) to Dominique Laboubé leader of the Dogs who died while on tour in the USA in 2006

Elliott Murphy - The Ghost Of Tom Joad .mp3 (Bruce Springsteen) live with Olivier Durand
Elliott Murphy - Rockin' In The Free World .mp3 (Neil Young) live with Gary Louris & Neal Casal
Elliott Murphy - Like A Rolling Stone .mp3 (Bob Dylan) live with Joseph Parsons

Bill Callahan New Sound

It’s a long time since I first heard Cat Power singing Batysphere, song number 9 from her third album What Would The Community Think (1996). On the cover of the cd, it was said: written by Bill Callahan (Smog).
Because everything that concern Chan Marshall opens my curiosity, I started to purchase Bill Callahan music until Dongs Of Sevotion (2000) – Held, from Knock Knock (1999) is for me one of his best song. Then I stopped, hard to say why, and I put the music from (Smog) between brackets… but I still believe that he is one of the most interesting indie singer-songwriter alive.
Woke on a Whaleheart (April 2007) is the first record to be released by Bill Callahan under his own name and the first one to be “open” to traditional American songwriting like folk and gospel. True or not, I’m sure that his 13th cd is worth a listen.

Web: Bill Callahan
MySpace: myspace.com/toomuchtolove
MySpace (Smog): myspace.com/smoggertone

Bill Callahan - Sycamore .mp3

Smog - Held .mp3

Lee Clayton Rides Alone

Today, I wish to post a short notice about a singer-songwriter who has no official website, no MySpace, not even a fan site. All that you’ll find about him in the web is a short bio on Wikipedia or allmusic. There you’ll learn for instance that the only country rock-singer that has influenced Bono was a pretty well unknown fellow named Lee Clayton (not Clayton Lee, don’t make the mistake).
I have two LPs from Lee Clayton, Naked Child (1979) and The Dream Goes On (1981). Last week, I put them on my old turntable for the first time since years and I was wondering if this talented singer-songwriter was still alive and what he has done since the 80’s. Well, the answer is nothing, or almost nothing, he just published two autobiographical books and, in 1990, released a live album entitled Another Night which was recorded in Oslo. Since, nothing, he is still alive, well, but he disappeared without any notice.
So, that was my two cents tribute to another unknown legend forgotten by most of Rock dictionaries. If by any chance, you’ll find one of Lee Clayton's albums in a flea market or elsewhere don’t hesitate you’ll discovered great songs like I Ride Alone, Little Cocaine or Silver Stallion covered, in 1990, by The Highwaymen (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson).

Lee Clayton - I Ride Alone .mp3 from Naked Child (1979)

The Highwaymen - Silver Stallion .mp3 (written by Lee Clayton) from Highwayman 2 (1990)

Blonde Redhead - 23: the Key Number

Simone and Amadeo Pace met Kazu Makino on a dating gay web site, Amadeo username was 23 said Kazu… and that is why 23 is the title of the latest cd from this magic trio from New York name Blonde Redhead; New York where two Italian twins started in 1995 to make ethereal, imaginary and heartfelt music with a Japanese singer.

With the first listening of 23 you think that the 10 songs are just one song, but the more and more you’ll listen to them the more you’ll discovered musical landscapes close to those of My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, Serge Gainsbourg, Saint Etienne or The Supremes (Silently, a wonderful song and the first single from 23). With 23, Blonde Redhead establishes now with serenity a brand new pop sound. A very very enjoyable album, believe me.

And Blonde Redhead is now touring in Europe, don't miss them.

Web: blonde-redhead.com
MySpace: myspace.com/blonderedheadislove

Lyrics and tour dates: blonderedhead23.com

Blonde Redhead - 23 .mp3 from 23 (4AD, released date, April 10th April)
Blonde Redhead - Elephant Woman .mp3 from Misery Is A Butterfly (2005)
Blonde Redhead - Falling Man .mp3 from Misery Is A Butterfly (2005)

Electrelane - LFSM, Part 5

Last Friday evening at La Cigale, Paris, Electrelane was the last stage of my marathon week during the Les Femmes s'en mêlent Festival – thanks a lot to Laurent from Ephelide for his support. Of course I couldn’t see all that the Festival offered to hear in Paris in more than two weeks, I missed Laura Viers and Marissa Nadler for example, but I am happy enough with what I saw (read previous posts).
To come back to Electrelane, I was not the only one to enjoy the show delivered by Verity Susman and her friends from Brighton and I was not the only one to be sad that Electrelane couldn’t come back for a second encore, curfew oblige at 10:30 pm. We were almost a thousand and, for me, it was the first time I'd seen them live and their confidence and energy on stage remind me of the late Sleater-Kinney. Of course, they played songs from there new album No Shouts, No Calls (Too Pure, April 30). As a support, a very good surprise, to be confirmed, Tender Forever.

Web: www.electrelane.com
Tour Blog: electrelane.com/tourblog
MySpace: myspace.com/electrelane

Electrelane - In Berlin .mp3 (from No Shouts, No Calls) via Sound Bites
Electrelane - Gabriel .mp3
Electrelane - Film Music .mp3
Electrelane - On Parade . mp3

Photo: Thanks to Robert Gil (photosconcerts.com)