The Wind Cries Jamie

“These are the days that I’ve been missing / Give me the taste / Give me the joy of summer wine” – “These Are the Days,” Twentysomething (Jamie Cullum’s 2004 debut album)

Just like the summer wine that he sings about, Jamie Cullum is completely intoxicating. Jamie is an incredibly talented artist who puts on one hell of a show. I came away from the concert completely enamored; what a love to feel!

Jamie Cullum a British jazz-pop artist who is relatable to his contemporaries, while also standing out in his own unique way. Like Michael Buble, he has mastered a tone that melts away, but unlike Michael Buble, he does not limit himself to the love ballad genre. Like Rufus Wainwright, he has a certain earnestness in his singing that is reflected in the (at times) dry, coarse, and smoky sound of his voice. And yet he differs from Rufus Wainwright in that Rufus is more of a storytelling artist. Like Ben Folds, Jamie Cullum is trained in piano and is not afraid to show it while performing. Both artists stand up, throw their heads and hair around to-and-fro, bang at the keys, etc. when they’re overcome by the melody. It is truly inspiring to watch both Jamie and Ben perform for this reason. However, Ben is more of a pop-piano artist and performs clever, witty, singer-songwriter songs, while Jamie is more of a jazz artist and plays whatever inspires him at the moment. [Honorable mention goes to Norah Jones (comparable because of great voice, great range of songs) and Lily Allen (comparable because of British nationality, witty songs).]


Jamie Cullum was truly a delight to see live because he truly performed as a “jazz” artist, in the sense that he presented a spontaneous, live-by-the-seat-of-your-pants form of art. While he played songs off his record, he’d often digress into his own interpretations of the song or into completely random tunes on his piano (one can only wonder if these were pieces he had learned at an earlier time that he suddenly felt like playing, or if he was ad-libbing and letting the tune play itself). Jamie warned the crowd of his constant deviations and also warned that once he gets going, he often finds it hard to stop. At one point during a detour, he got “going” so much that he turned his head away from the piano, covered his eyes with his left hand, and proceeded to play the entire tune (complex, fast-tempo, and all) with his right hand for a good minute or two. It was wildly impressive. Perhaps even more entertaining, though, was to watch his band’s reaction when this happened. Anytime he’d stray from the song, his band would stop and rest their instruments, fixated on him like attentive pets, waiting for their cue to join back in. However, this time, they might have been a little less loyal to Master Jamie; it was as if, for a brief second, a smirk came over each of their faces and they glanced at one another with raised eyebrows and rolling eyes as if saying, “what a showoff,” or “there Jamie goes again…”

The highlight of the evening, in my opinion, was when Jamie went off on a tangent – only to circle around and play one of my favorite songs of his. He started by playing/singing a cover of John Mayer’s song “Gravity.” After only a couple of lines, (“Gravity is working against me / Gravity wants to bring me down / Gravity stay the hell away from me… cause….. gravity…y…y…. ”) Jamie laughed along with the audience as he admitted that he didn’t actually know the words to the song but he thought it’d be “fun song to try.” However, this lack of direction didn’t stop him. He continued to chop away at the piano and somehow managed to find an opportunity to transition into a cover of Ray Charles’s “I’ve Got A Woman.” [Why not throw in a cover... or two... or three?] After singing a few lines about having a woman across town who wants to take his money, Jamie transitioned into “These Are the Days” – one of my favorite songs, off of his Twentysomething album. The first verse of the song goes “these are the days that I’ve been missing / give me the taste / give me the joy of summer wine // and these are the days that bring you meaning / I feel the stillness of the sun / and I feel fine.”

Jamie proceeded to sing this verse again at the end of the song, and to repeat the last line over and over again – “I feel fine.” At one point, he left his piano and walked around the stage – eyes closed and fingers snapping their own beat – cooing the line over and over to his own rhythm. He ended the procession by making his way to the center of the stage, without his microphone, standing in front of the crowd with his arms spread open, encouraging everyone to sing along with him those three simple words – “I feel fine!”

The evening was truly magical; it was such a privilege to be invited into Jamie Cullum’s special world. At times I felt my heart rise into my throat and my breath catch in my chest; I was relieved to know the dark auditorium disallowed anyone from seeing my cheeks blushing as I listened to Jamie serenade the crowd. I do not believe it is fair to assume that my heart was racing because of some schoolgirl fantasy of Jamie Cullum; rather, I think my emotions were caught up in the ideas that Jamie’s performance conveyed. Jamie played with such passion, such intensity, such focus, while at the same time maintaining a rowdy, joyful, light-hearted nature. As I watched Jamie play his piano and sing his songs, I found myself seeing love in his behaviors. And shouldn’t this be what love is all about? Shouldn’t a full-fledged love be full of incredible force and happiness and veracity? It was almost easy to miss these fine points of Jamie’s performance – but perhaps these were the most important. Seeing Jamie perform made me hope that someday I find a love in my own life that is on par with the level of affection in his performance. I’m not sure if my exact feelings quite translate when put into words, but as I’ve said, it was quite a magical feeling. I would recommend to anyone and everyone to see Jamie Cullum live in concert.

For the last song during his encore, Jamie took the liberty of modifying the popular song “Wind Cries Mary.” The audience found a last laugh in unexpectedly hearing him sing the words “and the wind….cries…. Jamie!” While this action easily could've been viewed as a cocky joke, the audience totally bought in; everyone took part in echoing his sentiments, much like worshippers singing out of a hymnal. It is only proper that my final words on the matter relay this consensus –

All hail the gospel of Jamie.

Jamie jumping off his piano at the end of his concert in Atlanta.

Jamie's cover of Rihanna's "Don't Stop the Music"
Jamie singing "Gran Torino" (theme from motion picture) live at Carnegie Hall
Official music video for "All At Sea" [Jamie's first single, released on his album Twentysomething]

MGMT Concert + She & Him

I was in London last week, and I was one of the lucky few hundred to score tickets to MGMT's concert there. They picked a very small venue called Heaven. It was great to see them up close and to be one of the first to hear their new album live. They alternated new songs with old material.

How was it? I have mixed feelings. The general consensus is that their sophomore album, Congratulations, features a new sound from them: they intentionally did not write anything like "Kids." I personally really like it: I think they're a band that genuinely tries to expand their sound and in different directions. They could have continued in the same vein as Oracular Spectacular, sold tons of records, opened for GaGa/U2/Coldplay and embraced the mainstream celebrity status. But they didn't, they took a riskier path and rejected "selling-out." No, I'm not a big fan of "Flash Delirum" (cluttered and aimless, in my opinion) but I think the album as a whole (which is streaming on their website) is strong.

However, this made for a rather awkward concert experience. The album had not been streamed or leaked online before the concert, so all we knew of their new material was "Flash Delirium" and some interviews. MGMT is not particularly charismatic live. The sound level was low. So people mostly stood around during the new songs and only became energized when something familiar was played. No one really knew what to expect. At the end, a lot of people were upset because they didn't play "Kids" at all, despite the fans chanting for it. While "Kids" isn't my favorite song by them, I do think that they should have played it, simply because the crowd obviously knew it and loved it. Deliberately leaving it out felt rather like a snub to the fans. However, I also understand that the night was supposed to be about their new album and a departure from their old sound.

Anyway, MGMT is hitting a few college concerts (Brown, Yale) so perhaps you'll see them soon. Listen to the new album and see what you think! Leave a comment and let me know.

Also, She & Him's wonderful new album, Volume Two, was released 5 days ago in the US. It's currently streaming in full here. The pairing of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward continues to be charming and endearing; fans of Volume One won't be disappointed.

Field Music - In Context

I recently came across Field Music and their music video "In Context." To be quite honest, after watching the music video, I cannot quite recall the song - only because the music video is so enthralling. I merely remember the song as the tolerable background noise that accompanied the music video that I was completely fixated on. Even though the song/video was released in 2006 [ie not recent], I still wanted to share it. (PS the song is pretty decent, now that I'm listening to it a second time.)

Here's the music video: Field Music - In Context

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MGMT RETURNS

Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden are back! MGMT is set to release their sophomore album, Congratulations, on April 13, 2010. In anticipation of the release, they are offering a free download of one of the album's tracks on their website. I JUST downloaded the song and am about to listen for the first time - hopefully it will be just as great as when the psychadelic, synthesizer-heavy "Fated to Pretend" was released as their first single a little over two years ago.

Download Flash Delirium for free and then leave a comment with your thoughts!

Adventures in Ghostland

By Jessica Capps

Add this to your list of things to do before you die.

When they come in town, I tell my friends that—even if they don't particularly like electronica music—they will not regret going to a Ghostland Observatory show. In the last calendar year, I have seen Ghostland three times (apparently they can't get enough of Nashville's Cannery Ballroom, and the feeling is mutual). The first time I saw them, I clearly remember turning to my roommate Margaret and declaring, “I could do this every night for the rest of my life, and never get tired of it.” It could be built into our nightly routine: we eat dinner...do homework...brush teeth...go dance around with lasers/balloons/electronic riffs...go home to put our retainers in...then sleep. 8AM anthropology.

By November 2008, I'd happened across a few Ghostland songs on Myspace (www.myspace.com/ghostlandobservatory), and I liked them enough to buy tickets for two friends to join me at their concert. I'd read very favorable online reviews of their concerts, but nothing prepared me for what I was about to see.

First, Thomas Turner (in his trademark blue cape) comes onstage inconspicuously and plays an intro on his synthesizer, full of dramatic electronic scales, which eventually slow down to a few brief, tense seconds of total silence. Suddenly, frontmanAaron Behrens (in his signature long braids and round, Hunter S. Thompson sunglasses) emerges from stage left, to the pounding beat of “Piano Man.” Also at this moment, stupefyingly powerful lasers shoot out from the stage, moving in perfect choreography with the song. Periodically, a full panel of colored lights stretches out and sweeps over the crowd. The lasers and colors envelope the smoke overhead, creating a visual effect that makes the air look like water hovering overhead. Then the crowd gets an eyeful of Behren's infamous stage moves: something between a belly dancer and Mick Jagger, they are every bit as captivating as the light show (see video below).

For the first 30 seconds of the opening song, my friends and I stand stock-still, looking upward at the spectacle, in supreme awe. Our gaze eventually slides downward to show each other identical expressions of total confusion and amazement – a look that reflected the fact that we were being shown things that we didn't know were possible. (That was when I had the epiphany that, for $18, you can either get (A) approximately one t-shirt from Target that will become worn-out in about six months' time, or you can get (B) your mind blown. )

We quickly regain consciousness and start to really enjoy ourselves. We dance for the next hour and a half, buoyant with happiness, in the inexplicable joy that can only come from bouncing around underneath a sea of changing colors and neon balloons.

All of this from just two men from Austin, Texas, who met through a newspaper ad (Austin Music & Entertainment). Turner creates the beats with his synthesizer and drums, while Behrens plays electric guitar and does vocals (the likes which have been compared to Freddie Mercury [Rhapsody] and Prince [Myspace]). On their Myspace website, it says that Ghostland's influences include Daft Punk, Green Velvet, andDavid Bowie (there's certainly a parallel between ol' Ziggy Stardust and Behren's own androgynous stage persona).

A Ghostland concert playlist moves fluidly from one song to the next, with only minimal commentary from the performers. The abundance of colorful stimulation coming from the stage makes this acceptable, and adds to the general feeling that Ghostland's aim is to give the audience an experience that is both visually and auditorily scrumptious, and not just to enhance their own egos. This slight detachment from the crowd also maintains a sense of mystery about the identity of these two quirky guys, which is an attractive concept in our world of over-exposed,Twitter-happy artists.

Now that I have seen Ghostland multiple times, I know what to expect -- the three shows I've seen have been essentially identical to each other. This predictability may be due to the fact that Ghostland has toured relentlessly since the release of their 2008 album Robotique Majestique, which means that their song repertoire hasn't been updated in a while. However: even though I know exactly the songs that they'll play, and exactly what the light show will be, I have yet to go to a Ghostland show without smiling for a solid 90 minutes. It may be predictable, but it is still nothing short of delightful.

Some songs are more melodic (e.g. "The Band Marches On"), while others showcaseBehren's unique half-scream singing (e.g. "Move With Your Lover"). The lyrics are typically about relationships, love and lust—songs that are not particularly thought-provoking, but simple enough to catch onto, so that even if you're a Ghostland newbie, you'll be singing along with Behrens -- yet another reason why anyone can have fun at this show.

Primarily consisting of twenty-somethings, a typical Ghostland crowd is about 1/3 glowstick-wielding Bonnaroo veterans, and 1/3 non-descript college-aged kids—both categories which are crammed shoulder-to-shoulder up front, pulsating happily to the beat like a glowing amoeba, sweating furiously and unabashedly. The final 1/3 are people who you really don't expect to see – frat guys and over-dressed girls who stand towards the back, so as to not get too sweaty (did they wander over from theAsher Roth concert?). Remarkably, this eccentric electronica duo has begun to boast not only a cult following, but also popularity in more mainstream circles.

As Ghostland continues to take the electronica world by storm, be sure not to miss the opportunity to see them--regardless of whether you like their music on an album, you will not be disappointed by their live show. Their concert is virtually unparalleled, their charisma unstoppable; their songs demand to be danced to, and the experience is, as a whole, ineffably fabulous.

Listen to: “Silver City” (Delete.Delete.I.Eat.Meat)

Video from Dec. 10, 2010 at the Cannery Ballroom (Nashville, TN)

*Ghostland gets its lasers through Lightwave International.

For a GREAT video of Ghostland's laser light show & more info on them, check out http://www.lasershows.net/content/view/87/92/

Boone, Lawrence. "Ghostland Observatory." Austin Music & Entertainment. 01 15 2010. Austin Music & Entertainment, Web. 2008. .

Sherburne, Philip. "Ghostland Observatory." Rhapsody Music. Web. .

A Night at the Exit/In with Bassnectar

By Jessica Capps

If you're in this band's audience, you're caught in a dance mob of hoodie-clad

twenty-somethings; you may or may not be wearing a costume, and chances are, at any given moment, you're wondering where the ganja smell's coming from. Even if you aren't under any sort of influence, you're definitely smiling uncontrollably, because you're in the middle of the most mind-boggling two hours you've ever spent (not counting the time you saw that movie Fight Club).

Enter Bassnectar, a team of visual artists and musicians. The collaboration's creative leader,Lorin Ashton, and his computers are the centerpiece of the stage, but the audience's attention is drawn to everything else around him – especially the lights that project laser beams over the crowd, and the gigantic LCD panels emitting a constant stream of dreamlike visuals.

At the Exit In for my first Bassnectar concert, I'm surprised to find a distinctly Woodstock-esque vibe in the crowd. In the corner, a bowl is passed around and shared amongst concertgoers. When I run into a former classmate, he introduces me to his giggling friends, and then whispers amusedly, “Don't mind them, they're all on acid.” Later, someone asks me if I'm on ecstasy; not waiting for an answer, he says benevolently, “I have some extra in my pocket, if you want any more!” As I start to politely decline, he disappears – only to return a few minutes later with a Dixie cup of water, explaining very seriously that it's important to drink a lot of water to stay hydrated. I am not on any drugs at all, but all the same, I appreciate this general spirit of camaraderie. Thanks for lookin' out for me!

This sense of community is appropriate for a Bassnectar concert, since (as Ashton himself says), the group represents an endeavor to not only “merge music, art, and new media,” but also “social involvement and community values” (“Bands.tv”). This makes it difficult to place Bassnectar squarely in any one genre, but it is a form of dub music called “dubstep,” which carries on the Jamaican reggae and dub musicians' tradition of reflecting a belief in the importance of social community (in fact, Bassnectar makes an homage to dub music's origins with the song “Kingston”).

Bassnectar's songs are complicated and vary in their structure. They're melodic, but with such heavy bass that, as the Nashville Scene warned concertgoers before the October performance, "this double-dose of way-out EDM [Electronic Dance Music] is bound to rumble your lower GI in ways you never thought possible" (Maloney). There are usually no lyrics in Bassnectar songs, except those that are sampled.

As you might guess, technology is a major part of the Bassnectar experience. The music itself requires computer technology that welds together different genres, creating sounds that closely mimic those that might be heard during an acid trip. Aside from that, the light show uses powerful instruments that project the laser light show far into the crowd. And of course, there are the LCD panels that complete the Bassnectar concert, which generate non-stop visuals, of everything from Discovery Earth-like landscapes, to animated breakdancers, to giant floating bubbles in fluorescent colors (see video below). Bassnectar's ambitious pursuance of new media has produced results that are as intriguing as they are delightful.

On Bassnectar's Myspace website, Ashton cites his influences as ranging across Nirvana, Run DMC, Frank Zappa, and native American flute music. He explains that his music is “an amalgamation of every sound I've ever heard, mixed with ultra wicked basslines.”Bassnectar allows Ashton the flexibility to combine any and all genres, with the option of pulling music from every nook and cranny of musical history. His samples come from a wide range of older music (for example, his dub with the Pixies' “Where Is My Mind” got a huge reaction from the crowd at the Exit/In), yet he also incorporates original ideas which come from his many collaborators. Almost every genre has been represented in Bassnectar's repertoire, which now includes eight albums. Some of the instrumentation that this includes is acoustic guitar, keyboards, theremin, snare drum, bass, and sequencers that make any other sound possible. The combined usage of these different sounds creates a texture that is sometimes described as a “soundscape.”

There are certainly some parallels between Bassnectar and earlier acid rock – undeniably, Bassnectar's concert is enough to make a completely sober person feel like they're on hallucinagens (without any risk of nausea or heart palpitations! *thumbs up*) With complicated structures and lengthy songs that are usually entirely instrumental, Bassnectar is a DJ sub-species of the jam band. Like other jam bands who are descendants of the fathers of acid rock, Bassnectar is dedicated to enhancing its live audience's experience,through visuals, light shows, and danceable music.

The appeal of a live Bassnectar show is huge today, at a time when people have a great appreciation for affordable ways of being uplifted. Go see Bassnectar and you'll be immersed in an environment where people believe in the possibility of positive change and human fellowship. And you needn't fret about what to wear to the show, since your dance partner will probably be wearing a dinosaur costume or a onesie—regardless, no one will care about your outfit, because everyone will be happily hypnotized by the spectacle on stage. This year, many of us were looking for an escape from term papers, the monotony of minimum wage jobs, the stresses of navigating a desolate economic climate. This is how I can justify spending all of my extra money on live music (that is to say, the money I don't spend at Smoothie King, which I could devote another entire blog to). The Bassnectar experience was beyond impressive, it was inspiring; which is why I've named this blog after a Bassnectar song.

Listen to: "Bomb Tha Blocks," Bassnectar (Underground Communication)

Video from Oct. 7, 2009 at the Exit In, Nashville, TN

"Bassnectar Profile." Bands.tv. 2007. Bands.tv, Web. 14 Nov 2009. <http://www.bands.tv/musician.php?item_id=5045>.

Maloney, Sean L. "Bassnectar & DJ Vadim at Exit/In." Nashville Arts. 01 10 2009. The Nashville Scene, Web. 14 Nov 2009. <http://www.nashvillescene.com/2009-10-01/arts/bassnectar-dj-vadim-at- exit-in/>.

NEW Broken Social Scene!!!

It's been a real long time since Broken Social Scene has done anything. This year they are coming out with a new album. I'm really excited. With what other band are you going to get to hear people like Feist and Amy Milan from Stars together.

They have recently released their first single "World Sick". It's 6 minutes long, but after it gets going around the 2 minute mark its pretty good. It's a lot simpler than their older stuff which used to seem like a wall of sound.

Along with the youtube video above, here is a link to download the song from Pitchfork. Just type in your email address and they'll send you a link to the song.

Also for the hell of it, here is the video to 7/4 Shoreline. That was my favorite song back in the day.

Grizzly Bear

Hey Guys,

Since everyone seems to be posting some of their favorite music from last year, I figure I had to talk about Grizzly Bear. They are a 4 piece band from Brooklyn, that you can classify as psychedelic folk. Imagine the Beach Boys on intense acid. This past year they released their 3rd album, Veckatimest, and I've basically been listening to it non-stop.

The first song I wanted to post is "Two Weeks". It's probably the one you've most likely heard before. The video is goofy as hell but I like it.

The second song I wanted to post is While You Wait for the Others. It's a little more alternative, and the video is even weirder and trippier than the first.

Eddie