| Author | Message | ||
     Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8696 Registered: 05-2005 |
Idlewild - A Modern Way Of Letting Go. One of my favourite ever Indie rock songs. And this is the first time I've ever seen the video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3dQBxn3 4Bw | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 1477 Registered: 10-2006 |
Alain Bashung - Immortels Bashung's version of the Dom A song that never made it on to Bleu Patrole, which will also be part of an eleven song album to be released in November. Good to hear, but I'm not crazy about the odd tinny sound to the voice on this particular track. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5rIb1t6 Ukw | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 3980 Registered: 03-2005 |
Stuart, I couldn't listen to your clip (not authorized for my country), but I found another one by searching Bashung's name and "Immortels." I thought the vocal sounded fine, maybe slightly "roomy" meaning you could hear the sound of the contained space he was probably singing inside as it hadn't been masked by the usual addition of reverb. Maybe this is a demo, albeit a good quality one. I love that one of Dom A's synth/keyboard arrangements was simply stripped down to mostly guitar which, of course, is the way most of Bleu Petrole was. What I can't find so far is the eleven song album to be released in November. I see a re-release of La Tournee des Grands Espaces on November 9, 2018. That doesn't have it on any of the 3 discs. Amazon.fr has the individual song available as a download but no information about an album. As the years go by I cannot get enough Alain Bashung. The man progressed so extraordinarily across his career. I am now truly being tortured for my lack of French. Researching . . . . | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 3981 Registered: 03-2005 |
Ok, I have the title now. En amont. I'll find it when it's released. In the meantime I've ordered a silly orange vinyl version of "Roman Photos" in the hope it comes with a download code or CD tucked in the LP jacket. I've tried to get one of the rare CD versions of that album for years. Hope I actually get the shipment. I seem to have about a 1 in 3 theft rate for LPs shipped through the mail. Even CDs have been getting more variable which indicates that theft is occurring in other parts of the shipping process than just from my doorstep. (The mailman always sticks the CDs through the mail slot in my door.) New unexpected Dom A, Chills, Ocean Party hopefully and now Bashung. This is looking like a really nice autumn for me. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8698 Registered: 05-2005 |
Grant McLennan - Put You Down | ||
| TROU Member Username: Trou Post Number: 441 Registered: 05-2005 |
Hello Randy, Roman photo, Bashung said himself he was not proud of it, so in his lifetime, he forbids to release it on cd. He was only happy with it when it cames out. In that era, it was difficult for unknown french singers to record something(he was already in the circuit since 11 years). For the connaisseurs, "C'est la faute ŕ Dylan" is the only song to be saved on this album. It must be only a thing for completists like you. I'll look for it, and other things, if you want. Did someone even stole the special edition of 'Fantaisie militaire" I've send to you some years ago? | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 1478 Registered: 10-2006 |
Sorry, Randy... would have made things a lot easier if I'd just mentioned the album title! Two other new French items just out are by Miossec (Les Rescapes) and Gaetan Roussel (Trafik). The latter's single, Hope, sounds like the souped-up poppy stuff on Anomalie, which I quite like. The Miossec single, on the other hand, Nous sommes, has his growl of a voice pitched in with computery keyboard stuff - sorry for getting all technical - which is less comfortable. His last album had very traditional instrumentation and was, I think, all the better for it. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 3982 Registered: 03-2005 |
No Jean, I received it. Surely I thanked you! If not, how horrible of me! But I'm pretty sure I did. That was before I started having problems with people pinching things. Artists are not always the best judges of their own work. I did pick up a copy of an Egg Records 7 inch of his songs "Roman Photos" and "Le Pianiste de l'eden" on a visit to Paris some years ago. Personally I liked both songs more than I do "C'est la faute a Dylan," which to be honest I think is kind of easy to forget. But I have a higher tolerance for pop than some other folks, and I've learned to appreciate the different guises Bashung assumed over the years as he explored his own musical path. I purchased a copy of the rare CD version of the album from someone online maybe 4 or 5 years ago but either that seller was dishonest or it too was lost in the mail. I consider "Roulette Russe" a mostly great album and cannot believe there won't be plenty of hints of the greatness to come on "Roman Photos." I even have his 1969 single Lise on its way to me--if it gets here--though I admit I don't expect to be impressed by the music. Seriously I am losing a lot of things in the mail nowadays. My discogs account is littered with things I paid for but never received. I never complain about it in the feedback because I don't think it is the fault of the sellers. Stuart, I'll check out the two new releases you mention. I'm not a huge fan of electronic stuff, but then I'm also not that keen on records without drums and yet Miossec's early records suited me fine. As did (and does) Paul Kelly's evergreen "Post." "Mammiferes" didn't grab me as much as it grabbed you but I love "Ici Bas, Ici Meme" so Miossec is certainly still on my list. Roussel is pretty reliable. In the meantime I decided to pick up the Arthur H album from early this year. I usually cull his records down to about half the songs but that surviving half is usually worth having. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 3983 Registered: 03-2005 |
Meanwhile, for song of the day, I nominate the opener to the new Chills album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7_WuT8M 2xg It's musically satisfying and Martin has something really honest and gentle and wonderful to say about this difficult and fractious era we are living in. (In my last post I had to force myself to delete a wholly gratuitous political comment.) | ||
| Rob Brookman Member Username: Rob_b Post Number: 1925 Registered: 08-2006 |
I'll back you on that, Randy. It's a winner. | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 1479 Registered: 10-2006 |
Miossec - Les infideles Track 4 from his new one is a swooning ballad with what sounds like a weeping string quartet all through its brief, yet epic length. Coming on just as I was reading some lines from Clive James's latest (never quite last) verse offering from the twilight zone, everything went very woozy there for a moment. Whew. | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 1480 Registered: 10-2006 |
The new album, 11 tracks in 33 minutes, sounds great. Lots of rhythmic playfulness, good dynamics, colourful & tuneful. Goes back on as soon as it finishes. Highly enjoyable. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 3988 Registered: 03-2005 |
Notes taken Stuart. Meanwhile, my copy of the orange vinyl reissue of Bashung's Roman Photos arrived. As I hoped, it came with a download code for digital versions of the album. As TROU warned above, it is not exactly a classic album. But it does have its moments, mostly when Bashung is doing his Franco-country thing. These tend to point toward the excellent songs that populate 3/4 of Roulette Russe, not to mention "Osez Josephine" and "Chatterton." I will probably put four of the songs on the iPod. In my book this is a worthwhile boost to my Bashung library. Here are the title song and one other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3G0aysbn xXE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_U9teOUP lCM The odd one out is the almost-great decidedly non-country "Le Pianiste de l'Eden." It resolves its long verses with an unfortunate bit of sappy 70s pop balladic formula but most of it is pretty decent. It is the flip side to the "Roman Photo" single: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgc8W7rH Ayc | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8703 Registered: 05-2005 |
The Beastie Boys - Make Some Noise. I just saw its great video for the first time. Amazing what you come across when you go down a YouTube rabbit hole. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdgLMslb DuY | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8704 Registered: 05-2005 |
I just watched the video for Alain Bashung's version of Immortels. I love the original, so didn't imagine this would match it. And it doesn't. It's better. I have no idea what he's saying, but I'm moved to tears by it. Thank you to whoever on this board introduced me to Dom A and Bashung. It's probably Andrew who deserves the credit, but sorry if it's Stuart, Randy, TROU or someone else. Merci. | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 1481 Registered: 10-2006 |
Actually, the Bashung version probably IS the original, with Dom A writing it (I imagine) for AB to include on Bleu Petrole. But, if I understand one of the French articles correctly, Bashung left it off the album for superstitious reasons, considering the subject of the song and the grievous state of his health at the time, so Dom recorded his own version. I've been wondering for a long time if a demo might surface and it's good to have it. If I've got the chain right, I think Trou originally brought Bashung to the board, one wonders under what particular circumstances, and then Randy's magnificent infatuation doubtless influenced the rest of us. It is one of the many things on this board I shall remain eternally grateful for, since getting to know the mighty Bashung then opened up an abundance of of modern French music from a host of wonderful artists I had never heard of. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 3989 Registered: 03-2005 |
Cheers Padraig. I remember you posting Dom A's "Immortels" as song of the day some time in the past. My recollection is that someone announced Bashung's death on this Board and it all flowed from there. I think it was Trou but it might have been Andrew. I remember ordering a copy of "Pizza" and wondering what all the fuss was about. (I now have a higher opinion of "Pizza" but I'm still not keen on some of it such as "Gaby Oh Gaby" and I wouldn't have anybody start with that album.). Trou then very generously sent me CDrs of some of Bashung's better albums and I was hooked. My recollection is that he sent "Osez Josephine," "Fantaisie Militaire," "Bleu Petrole" and the challenging, dark "L'Imprudence." These gave me a great sense of the wide sweep of Bashung and the fact that when you order an album of his you will only be getting a small segment. Bashung is a real favorite of mine, but sometimes hard to explain to people because he was SO restless as a creative artist. I had to get just about everything to start to see the patterns, the push me/pull you relationship between the record label and Bashung's pursuit of the things that interested him. I also had to get all the records to then hear a record like "Pizza" differently. He was a vital artist to the very end. When I had an entertaining discussion with a record shop owner in Paris (Monster Melodies) I pitched the idea that Bashung was a cross between Bowie and Leonard Cohen. The shop owner thought I wildly overrated him but he was a bit of a French version of me. Whereas I slag off everything from the U.S. he had a tendency to slag off everything from France. And he was a big prog fan. I credit Stuart with Dom A. And Miossec. Bashung's "Immortels" is a real find. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8705 Registered: 05-2005 |
Thanks for the detailed replies, lads. Bashung really reminds me of John Cale on Immortels. I can see Bowie and Cohen in there too, though. Your story, Randy, reminds me of being in a record shop on my first visit to Brisbane and the guy behind the counter had never heard of The Go-Betweens. I mentioned this to Grant when interviewing him by phone a few years later and he said: "It's hard to be a prophet in your own town... It's hard to turn a profit in your own town." | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 1482 Registered: 10-2006 |
Bowie and Cohen? But he had that rock swagger to him which neither of these guys had, snakeskin boots and all, a certain graceful arrogance that reminds me a bit of John Lennon (he even looks like Lennon in certain photos). Cutting his musical teeth on American airbases, his love of American music shines through almost everything he did, so there's a bit of Johnny Cash in there too for me. All that mixed with the great French tradition through Brel and Gainsbourg and you have a hell of a wonderful stew. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8706 Registered: 05-2005 |
Paul Kelly - Bound To Follow (Aisling Song), from his out today album Nature. Co-written with his nephew Dan Kelly, whose brilliant guitar work is all over this. Kate Miller-Heidke sings quite wonderfully on it too. | ||
| Simon Withers Member Username: Sfwithers Post Number: 554 Registered: 08-2005 |
They Might Be Giants - Particle Man, especially this live version with guitar and... Stylophone. I saw them a couple of weeks ago in Bristol, UK, one of my favourite gigs of the last few years (though walking to the gig I had a run-in with a group of 10-12 feral kids that resulted in a phone call to the police and me scaring the bejeesus out of a couple of them; they didn't expect an outwardly mild-mannered middle-aged man to react to their verbal abuse and stone throwing, but I take shit from no-one. Something I may regret one day...). But the gig was excellent, and TMBG (like Portishead who I saw a few years ago) were a band I thought I'd never see. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHgziac8 7-Y | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8707 Registered: 05-2005 |
Simon, I'm envious that you saw TMBG and Portishead. I've seen neither. Sorry to hear of your unpleasant encounter. Hopefully you have scared them straight. | ||
| Simon Withers Member Username: Sfwithers Post Number: 555 Registered: 08-2005 |
There are very few acts around these days that I'm going to regret not seeing, with Kate Bush probably being the most prominent - tour again, Kate, tour again!! We did try for tickets when she last played but failed to get them. Portishead were superb. They played a festival warm-up gig at Cardiff University, so quite a small venue. Sadly, quite a few of the audience - I guess students - chose to talk their way through a lot of it, having paid Ł25 to be there. I don't understand that at all. As for the kids, I chased after one of them for a few hundred metres as bags of chocolate - presumably shoplifted - fell from his pockets. I could have caught him but what then? What I'd like to have done is kick him from here to kingdom come and back again, which would give me the criminal record. So I made do with scaring him by chasing him - I don't like bullying in any form - and reporting them to the police. Being the UK it could well be caught on CCTV. | ||
| TROU Member Username: Trou Post Number: 442 Registered: 05-2005 |
TMBG in Cologne was also something I didn't wanted to miss. I saw them at the same venue in 1989, for the Lincoln tour. They were a duo at the time. One of the best concerts I've ever seen. Next one are Etienne Daho, the Apartments (with Andreas!), Neko Case and Barbara Carlotti. God blessed 2018! The concert I think I'll never see is Paul McCartney. Now I could pay big money to see him in a decent place near me… | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 3994 Registered: 03-2005 |
Following up on Andrew's gig post, here's my song of the day: Apartments -- The Shyest Time https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XbI9VJQ GV0 In between albums, PMW aims for the radio. Sort of. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8709 Registered: 05-2005 |
Rob Brookman And The Zero Sum - The Beat Goes On | ||
| Rob Brookman Member Username: Rob_b Post Number: 1928 Registered: 08-2006 |
I think getting a "Song of the Day" slot is one of the highlights of my sorry, half-assed music career. You're too kind, Padraig, and I'm flattered by the mention. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8715 Registered: 05-2005 |
The Chills - Complex. It sounds like Soft Bomb-era Chills (albeit on a tighter budget). | ||
| Andrew Kerr Member Username: Andrew_k Post Number: 1239 Registered: 04-2005 |
Strawberry Switchblade - Trees and Flowers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl4OtSjT yNU Featuring Roddy Frame on guitar. And produced by Bill Drummond and David Balfe. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 8717 Registered: 05-2005 |
My Drug Hell - Girl At The Bus Stop. They're English, but the music sounds more like American indie. I was astonished to find out with a quick google search that they are still playing and recording. | ||
| david_g Unregistered guest |
Josh Ritter - Here at the Right Time. |