Mere musik

Remember that long post I said I was going to write, uh, the day before yesterday? Obviously it didn’t happen. Initially, I decided I was probably never again going to be traveling by bus through the Danish countryside between Roskilde and Helsingør, and I’d rather look out the window. And later, by the time I’d written it, my internet connection was gone. But here it is now.

The past several days I’ve listened to several new albums. To be fair, two were compilations, and contained a lot of previously released tracks -- but also some new ones. In either case, I’d never heard most of them.

Let me start where I started: Tuesday. I finally listened to the new Sigur Rós album, Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust. (No idea what it means, sorry.) It’s okay. I didn’t like the first four songs -- to me, it sounded like Sigur Rós on happy pills, and I’d rather listen to Takk. However, from track five on, things pick up (or perhaps I should say slow down) and the latter half of the album is really enjoyable, in the old way. I especially liked Ára bátur. You can stream the full album on last.fm.

A while after going through the album a few times, I watched the video for Gobbledigook, even though I hadn’t particularly liked the song. It’s interesting, I’ll say -- and I’ll leave it at that. However, it did make me like the song itself a lot more. And if I ever get a tattoo (I won’t) I now know where I’m putting it.

Anyway. Moving on. The other day in the (e)mail a special present arrived from Labrador: The Summer 2008 sampler. 30 tracks from 17 different artists, all current and/or former Labrador affiliates. Talk about good.

You can download the album in full (here, as a zip file) and a lot of the songs can be downloaded individually as well (check Labrador's sounds site). There are a couple I want to particularly draw attention to. One is Explosions, by the Mary Onettes. I’d listened to the band a bit before, and wasn’t impressed. But this time around, something about Explosions really clicked with me, and it’s one of my favorite songs on the comp. Sort of a Jesus and Mary Chain feel, I think.

Another nice track is Club 8’s You and Me. It’s older (from 2001's Summer Songs EP), but I’d never heard it before. Unfortunately, like many of Club 8’s songs seem to be, it’s rather short (exactly two minutes). It’s not my favorite Club 8 song, but let’s be honest -- it’s Club 8. I’m happy.

Also awesome is Her Breasts Were Still Small, by Tribeca, who I’d never even heard of before. It’s the kind of song I imagine would be played in a very small, very dark, very sweaty club where everyone is wearing black, at like four in the morning. It also reminds me of that Blue Swan song Scene I – Just Like You Don’t -- but for entirely different reasons. It isn’t a lot like what I usually listen to, but I really, really like it.

Okay, and then something which you’ve probably already seen, if not downloaded, if you’ve read any indie pop mp3 blogs at all in the past few days: the Eardrums Summer’s Here! 2008 compilation. (Download here, also as zips.) 48 songs in two volumes and... wow. About half the artists are from Sweden and Norway (with the rest mostly from Australia, the UK, and here and there). I got it about 36 hours after finishing downloading the Labrador comp, and it was kind of overload. (Of course, it probably would have been anyway, but, well…) What good overload, though.

My favorite song on the compilation actually comes from the US: Our Time to Fall, by Fireflies. I don’t know what it is about this guy. The song is pretty simple; very crisp and clean. Also, he sounds like he’s whispering, which is really hard to successfully do. The words themselves are very good too. But now it’s time to talk about Scandinavian pop, so…

There’s also a remix of the newest Club 8 song, Take Me Home, but it’s rather disappointing. I like the original version far, far better. If you’re not already aware, that can be streamed at last.fm, too.

Instead I’ll focus on two other songs, one by a Norwegian band -- or, actually, just one guy, called the Little Hands of Asphalt. The song, Blue & Green, is very lo-fi and low-key, and kind of weird (lyrically, not sonically). To be honest, it sounds pretty much like it could be Fireflies, which may be why I like it. I’ve never heard anything else by the band, unfortunately, so I can’t say what their other stuff sounds like or even if further listening is worthwhile. (I no longer have very regular internet access, and probably won’t until I return to the states about a week and a half from now. I also have no headphones, and, when in a public place, streaming stuff online with my speakers is not really an option.)

I also liked The Summer’s First Kiss, by Celestial (from Sweden), which nearly closes out the comp (second to last). It sounds a lot like the others -- not particularly summery, I guess -- or rather, more like a slow-motion summer. It makes sense to me. It sounds good to me.

Anyway, good albums; good -- and mostly free! -- songs. And since I feel bad about the lack of mp3s available to download the past few weeks, hopefully this will do a bit to make up for it.

--DL--
Explosions (the Mary Onettes)
You and Me (Club 8)
Her Breasts Were Still Small (Tribeca)
Blue & Green (Little Hands of Asphalt)
The Summer’s First Kiss (Celestial)

Er der nogen at gøre på en mandag aften i Göteborg?

So for this class I’m taking, we go on a study tour the last week. I finally got the schedule yesterday. We’re in København til Friday. Then as follows:

27. june -- overnight in Odense, DK
28.-29. june -- overnight in Aalborg, DK
30. june -- overnight in Göteborg, SV
1. july -- overnight in Malmö, SV
2. july -- overnight in København, DK

I’ve listed this in slightly more detail over on the tour blog. You can also email me, and I’ll tell you (to the best of my knowledge) when and where. And if you live in or are familiar with any of these places where I’m staying, perhaps you would care to suggest anything for me to do after the school stuff is over for the day. The only thing I know about Aalborg is that Studenterhuset closes for the summer about two days before I get there -- and I know even less about the other cities…

I'm excited, though -- especially for the Roskilde pre-festival stuff (26. and 27.) and to be going to Sweden. I'd rather go to Stockholm, but it is a bit far away, and -- on second thought, it's probably good we're not going to Stockholm. I'd probably spend the entire time stalking Hello Saferide.

Anyway, expect a big post about new-ish music tomorrow. It might not be posted until late in the day, depending on when I have computer/internet access. But I will at least write it.

Now I have to go buy (of all things) socks. It occurred to me last night that it’s quite likely I won’t have access to a washing machine after we leave on Friday -- and seriously, who thought it would be a good idea to only bring four pair of socks? Sometimes I just don’t think.

Recordbutikker

Kan nogen anbefale en eller to gode recordbutikker i København? Navner er fint, men adresse eller rejseplaner er endnu bedre. Jeg har set nogle få, men jeg er sikkert, at jeg har ikke fundet bedste af dem. Og jeg vil gerne besøge nogle, mens jeg er her. Tak tak tak.

Og jeg ved, ordning af ordene der er ikke rigtig, men det kan jeg ikke finde ud af. Undskyld.

Du er ikke overraskede.

I lørdags, tog jeg ikke til koncerten. Det kunne jeg ikke. Jeg synes, jeg lide at være der med andre mennesker næsten mere end kun at se/høre musik. Og jeg vidste, jeg ville kende ingen, så derfor...

Jeg håber, jeg skal se Said the Shark og de andre på City Attack festivalen 28. juni, men det ved jeg endnu ikke. Det vil jeg tage alene, fordi det er udenfor og gratis, så kan jeg komme og gå, hvis jeg er nervøs. Problemet er at jeg skal måske ikke være i København, eller hvis jeg er her, jeg måtte være i en anden plads med min skolegruppe. Men det var det.

I aften er Sankthansaften, og jeg glæder mig for det. Vi har ikke noget lige det i USA, og jeg vil gerne se bål og alle af det. Jeg håber kun, det regner ikke.

Koncert i aften?

I aften, skal jeg måske til en koncert i Rust, med No and the Maybes og Decorate. Decorate. og A Kid Herafter. Jeg skal se A Kid Hereafter på Roskilde Festivalen, men jeg kan også lide de andre to -- især No and the Maybes. (Her også er et sang fra dem: Mouth. Men du skal hellere lytte til I Know a Girl, på deres myspace.)

Og også, der er dette: der er ikke så mange bands som spille i København som i Portland, så måske, hvis jeg tager mig ikke til denne, skal jeg ikke se ingen. Men det ved jeg ikke. Jeg måtte tænke mere om det. Er der nogle andre som skal også være der?

Hvis du har ikke endnu set det, spilleplanen for Roskilde Festivalen er nu op for at se. Brug det enten hvis du skal tage der -- eller hvis du skal ikke være der, men vil gerne at fortælle mig hvem jeg skal absolut se.

--

I am thinking about going to the evening (not night) show at Rust tonight. No and the Maybes, Decorate. Decorate., and A Kid Hereafter. I’ll most likely also see A Kid Hereafter at the Roskilde Festival, but not the other two, and I do like them as well -- especially No and the Maybes. (Download Mouth, or stream I Know a Girl, which I like better, via myspace.)

Another reason to go: the fact that, compared to Portland, bands simply don’t play shows anywhere near as frequently here. If I don’t go see these guys tonight, well, I might not see anyone at all. I’m still thinking, though. I don’t like going to things by myself, and I think it should go without saying that I don’t know anyone else who’s going (unless you are?). So I’ll see…

Also, if you are not in the habit of checking several times each day, as I am, you may not yet have noticed that the finalized Roskilde Festival schedule is now up. This may come in handy for both those who are going, as well as for those who will not be in attendance, but would like to live vicariously through my experiences there.

--DL--
Mouth (No and the Maybes)

Uendelig uretfærdig

I am incredibly… annoyed isn’t the right word -- upset, maybe? Tonight, while Josh back home gets to see Frightened Rabbit, the Scottish band of our dreams, I have to spend the evening observing some rap duo -- from the United States, no less. If I must see a rap group, at least give me a Danish one.

To be honest, I am excited to be going to Vega (the venue). And I did come here for music. With luck, this evening's deal’ll wind up very much like nearly ever other show I’ve ever attended, and I’ll pay far more attention to the rest of the audience than to the band. Unfortunately, watching the crowd at a hip-hop show (and yes, I’ve oddly enough been to one or two before, so I know) is just not as exciting as watching the crowd at a rock show, nor as engrossing and as emotionally meaningful as watching the (swooning) crowd at a morose Scottish indie pop show. Maybe I’ll just pretend I’m somewhere else...

You can download Head Rolls Off, the first single from their most recent album, the Midnight Organ Fight, or stream pretty much everything Frightened Rabbit has ever released under the discography section of their label’s website. Where to start? Well, anyone who knows me should instantly recognize why I’m so attached to Old Old Fashioned; nonetheless, I won’t specifically recommend that, or any other track, because I actually recommend everything. Oh my god. If I got on a plane right now, I could make it back in time.

--DL--
Head Rolls Off (Frightened Rabbit)

En overraskelse

I have two things to say, and I’ll say them very quickly, so I can attempt to read 47 pages of a business textbook (how did this happen?) and then go to sleep, since I’m still exhausted. In chronological order:

Yesterday I met Ivan of Oliver North Boy Choir (also writer of In a Cyclone of Stones) and Simon of Zvook Mescalin. Tried to listen while they spoke in Danish, and understood the numbers but not much else -- giving further credence to the idea that my written Danish is far better than my spoken. (Og mit skriftligt er heller ikke særligt godt.)

Nice meeting them both, and far more stimulating than the Little Mermaid, as evinced by the fact that it was nearing eleven o’clock and I still hadn’t fallen asleep… Anyway, though -- talked about music, and talking about music is always fun.

And secondly: Had my first classes (actually one class, two sessions) today. Seems kind of interesting-- but I have the feeling that, as usual, I’m going to enjoy the lectures but find the readings really dry. Because our instructor is nice and recognizes that there are people like me with extremely short attention spans (or something like that) we get to have a break midway through each day. The content of the break is relevant to the course, and today, we watched a music video by the Knife.

I do not like the Knife. But as the song started, it occurred to me that it wasn’t bad. A few minutes in, I decided that it was the best Knife song I’d ever heard. It’s called Heartbeats, and it’s an older song -- perhaps it came out before they got all weird? I haven’t listened to the words yet, but it sounds good, and the video is spectacular, resembling nothing more than an old home movie of slightly out-of-focus children skateboarding downhill in elaborate and rather dangerous-looking patterns. There are a few crow moments, but overall, I like it. Not the best song I’ve ever heard, but far superior -- in my mind -- to other Knife tracks, and certainly a decent study break.

I'd write more -- about both these things -- but my eyes simply will not stay open that long. I don't know what's wrong.

I København

Earlier today, while I was waiting at a stoplight, it occurred to me that now that I’m in Scandinavia, I should only listen to American music. I had this thought for about three seconds. Then I thought, what a terrible idea. Back to Air France.

That’s what I’m listening to now, and I think the highlight of my plane trip was seeing an Air France plane at the Frankfurt airport.

The lowlight of the trip so far was finding this Copenhagen music guide last night at the restaurant where the school group ate. Thrilled as I am to now have all the shows in the city listed in one place, the calendar also told me something I did not want to know: namely, that Said the Shark had played at Gimle the night before. Yes, it’s in Roskilde. Yes, it’s unlikely that I would have gone, even if I had known. And yes, it’s extremely likely that I would have fallen asleep standing up, since I’d just gotten in earlier that afternoon. But all that is beside the point, which is that I could have gone…

According to myspace, Said the Shark is next playing the City Attack festival 28. june. I’m not sure where I’ll be then, but seeing as the 28. is right in the middle of my school study tour, I’m guessing I won’t be in Copenhagen. Sad.

Please, if you know of anything interesting, feel free to recommend events. I don’t have much on my schedule right now, and to be honest (hopefully no one from the university reads this) I didn’t come here for school. I came here for music.

I haven’t listened to anything new in a while, so no mp3s this time. Soon, I hope.

And OH ALSO: While I am in Denmark, I am keeping another blog, chronicling my daily activities, or at least attempting to do. It is mainly for my parents, but if you want to know more of what I’m up to, or see pictures (because I refuse to post photos here), well, here you go: Denmark Summer 2008. There’s a link in the sidebar, too.

Åh min gud

I leave here in a few hours. At this point, all I can say is, oh, wow.

This is what the radio looks like for the next few weeks: Tonight, Tony will be covering my show, and the following three Wednesday evening shows will be hosted by Dave (who promises to play lots of Swedish music). Huge thanks to them. I’m not sure what’s going on with the Friday slots -- at this point, it looks like probably nothing. I plan to resume the show myself 9. July.

Feel free to email me if you’d like to meet up while I’m in Denmark -- or for any other purpose, as well.

Virkeligt sidst program (og fødselsdag)

Yesterday’s was the last show until I come back from Denmark in mid-July.

En meget god spilleliste:

1. Dance With Me – Adam Green
2. Your Arms Around Me – Jens Lekman (SV)
3. Hands Remember – Seabear (IS)
4. Pretenders – Montt Mardié featuring Hello Saferide (SV, SV)
5. I Know a Place – Jay Reatard
6. Cash 22 – the Flaming Stars
7. Trying Something New – the Honeydrips (SV)
8. Too Young (The Tough Alliance Remix) – Taken by Trees (SV, SV)
9. More than This – Electrelane
10. Missing – Doí (DK)
11. 156 – Mew (DK)
12. My Best Friend – Hello Saferide (SV)

Toward the end, you can also hear Arya and Ando singing ‘Happy Birthday.’ Even though I don’t really care for my birthday, that kind of made my day.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (6. juni 2008)

Sidst program

Jeg er trist...

Spilleliste fra i gårs aften:

1. Jesus, Walk With Me (The Sound of Arrows remix) – Club 8 (SV, SV)
2. Icecold Kisses – Ostrich (SV)
3. Play it for Today – the Legends (SV)
4. Yes, nu skal vi ud i bilen og vi bestemmer selv hvad vi må – Frisk Frugt (DK)
5. Because Trees Can Fly – Lampshade (SV)
6. Ronan Keating – Free Loan Investments (SV)
7. Mengele y el Amor – Klaus&Kinski
8. Something New – Oliver North Boy Choir (DK)
9. This Moment – Under Electric Light
10. Blush – the Raveonettes (DK)
11. Black Magic – Jarvis Cocker
12. Bosphorus Bridge – Tiger Baby (DK)
13. Tindrer – Under Byen (DK)
14. Summercat – Billie the Vision & the Dancers (SV)

I’d like to reiterate: that was my last Wednesday show -- for a while, at least. Next Wednesday at 9 pm, I will be somewhere in the air between here (Portland) and Denmark. I will be back in time to resume my show 9. July; however, I may be moving to a different time slot. I don’t know details yet, nor do I know who (if anyone) will be covering the show. I will let you know as soon as I do.

I will still be around tomorrow (Friday), so there will be one last show then (6. June, 3-4 pm Pacific, KPSU). Tomorrow is also my birthday. In addition to wanting to listen to music I like such a day, I tend to play really good sets right before I leave a place… I thought yesterday’s was pretty good, and hope tomorrow’s will be as well. Tune in if you’d like.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (4. juni 2008)

Baglæns?

Club 8 har en ny EP -- Jesus, Walk With Me. Titelsanget kommer fra deres september album The Boy Who Couldn’t Stop Dreaming. Jeg troede, EP’er kommer ud før albummer, men jeg vil aldrig klage om en ny ting fra Club 8.

Hvis du er lige mig, du har måske allerede hørt flest af sange. Af fem sange, to er remixer af Jesus, Walk With Me. En, fra Jimahl, er gammel, men de andre, fra The Sound of Arrows, er ny. Det lyder mere interessant i sidst halv. Og, fordi Labrador er så meget gavmild, du må downloade The Sound of Arrowses remix af Jesus, Walk With Me. Du kan læse hvad jeg skrev om (og, tror jeg, downloade) Jimahls remix her.

Den anden sang, What I’m Dreaming of is Something I Could Have, kom første ud som et gratiale spor med The Boy Who Couldn’t Stop Dreaming, men jeg tror, du må ny købe EP’en for at have det.

Og endelig -- Take Me Home, det andet nyt, lyder endnu mere lige en kirkesang end Jesus, Walk With Me. Mere og mere, deres ‘tema’ forekommer at være kirkesange med bittersød lyrik, hvor Karolinas stemme lyder lige et helt kor... Det passer sammen med resten af album og andre Club 8 sange. Og det er pragtfuldt, og pragtfuldt er det eneste rigtigt ord.

EP kommer ud ikke til 11. juni, men det kan man ny købe på internettet, og Labrador skal poste det i dag. Eller, du må også spille alle fem sange på last.fm.

And now, Josh, an English translation, since I know you will be desperate to know what this says. In short -- Club 8 has a new EP (Jesus, Walk With Me) with a new song (Take Me Home). Plus some remixes. The stream's already up at last.fm. I don't think it's really necessary for me to say how good it is.

--DL--
Jesus, Walk With Me – The Sound of Arrows Remix (Club 8)

Jeres.

Sincerely Yours has been absolutely insane with new releases this month. The latest is Jonas Game’s new single, Fish and Shark. This is what I like best about Jonas Game: if you’re not really paying attention, it sounds like he’s singing in Swedish. (He’s not. It’s English.) Maybe that’s not the best explanation of his sound, so here’s the other thing I like best: he gasps all the time. When other singers do this, it often sounds kind of terrible; when Jonas Game does it, it sounds like just another part of the song. It’s very fitting.

Fish and Shark, like the previous single (ADHD) is poppy, but not in the unpleasant, saccharine way -- in the Sincerely Yours way. I have no idea why the song is called Fish and Shark, but I guess titles don’t matter compared to what the songs sound like.

Also released on Sincerely Yours this week was a 6-track album by Air France. You can listen to one of the songs (Collapsing At Your Doorstep) on the podcast, along with Fish and Shark and some others.

Spillelisten:
1. I’d Rather Dance with You – Kings of Convenience (N)
2. Hounds of Love – the Futureheads
3. Long Lost Penpal – Hello Saferide (SV)
4. Crackdown – Kaspar Hauser
5. Stars – Port Friendly (DK)
6. Collapsing At Your Doorstep – Air France (SV)
7. Happy Healthy Lucky Month – Saint Jude’s Infirmary
8. Fish and Shark – Jonas Game (SV)
9. You Don’t Dance – Lupus (DK)
10. Hard to Realize – Anamia (DK)
11. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – the Pains of Being Pure at Heart
12. Am I Wry? No – Mew (DK)
13. Annie Laurie – the Radio Dept. (SV)

If you read Danish -- or even if you’d just like to listen to a few songs and/or watch a few videos -- Emodreng & Indiepige has a pretty nice post on the Sincerely Yours releases, too.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (30. maj 2008)
Fish and Shark (Jonas Game)