Watch: Bowerbirds - "Tuck the Darkness In"

One of my favorite things about North Carolina folk twosome (recently turned moresome) Bowerbirds is that they display their beliefs proudly - they're nature people. It informs their pastoral lyricism, slips casually into their interviews, their tweets, and their blog rather unapologetically. And it comes out in interesting new way in their latest video for new single "Tuck the Darkness In".

A little boy careless hunting for fish in his mother's work aquarium sees what happens you actual catch it and has an epiphany. That's the general gist of the video. I won't ruin it because for such a simple plot line, the video is artfully dramatic and handled in a way that not as preachy as it sounds. It's more about realizing the consequences of your actions and doing your best to rectify that. And if it happens to feature an adorable little kid dressed up in a fish costume? Well that's just extra.


"Tuck the Darkness In" by Bowerbirds from Secretly Jag on Vimeo.


Bowerbirds new album The Clearing is out today on Dead Oceans.

Listen: Ghost Lake - "Late Spring Morning Sunlight"

Remember the charming Swedish indie pop trio Heart-Sick Groans who's brand new tune "If the Canary Stops Singing" I premiere last month? Of course you do. While they're currently working on the latest EP (and a video for "If the Canary Stops Singing" if Facebook pics are to be believed), one of the lads is stepping out on his own. Henric Wallmark, co-songwriter and producer, is releasing his solo debut as Ghost Lake later this month.

On "Late Spring Morning Sunlight", Ghost Lake trades in the overt catchiness and perfect arrangements of Heart-Sick Groans and offers up something a little more introspective without trading in any of that overabundance of talent. The track is still catchy in the way that's sure to give you a case of earworm, with its craning melodies and plentiful percussion. It's a simple love song that still manages to be heart-warmingly infectious. Check it out.



Ghost Lake's solo debut Late Spring Morning Sunlight EP is out March 15th on THEM Records so look out for it!

Cheyenne Marie Mize - We Don't Need EP (2012)

I was trying to remember when I've heard of Louisville songstress Cheyenne Marie Mize when it dawned upon me: the sultry songtress is featured on Ben Sollee's Inclusions. Being associated with Sollee is a bit of a double-edged sword - the man's reputation as a dynamic innovator is approaching the stuff of legend so anyone associated with him might be regarded with the same expectations of inventiveness. Luckily for Mize, she lives up to the expectation.

On We Don't Need, Mize achieves in 6 songs what some artists fail to do in a whole album - create a collection of songs invigoratingly good and boldly unique while also fitting perfectly together. Cheyenne Marie Mize has a remarkable talent for balance - noisy without being deafening, spacious yet in no way lacking. Mize's also got considerable vocal chops - fiery in "Wishing Well" and "Keep It", silky smooth (and still a bit fiery) in "It Lingers", haunting and barely there in "Back Around". We Don't Need distinguishes Mize as a certifiable bad ass and yet not wholly without feeling. The girl rocks and while she doesn't exactly break the mold she sure does rough it up a bit.

Get a taste of Cheyenne Marie Mize with this live video for "Keep It":

All Around Sound Is Turning Two! - Day 1: MiddleClassWhiteNoise

This week (March 10th to be exact), All Around Sound is turning two years old and to celebrate this momentous occasion I thought I'd do something a little special: To help ring in the occasion I asked a couple of blogs/miscellaneous awesome people to contribute a little something to make things a little more festive with some playlists. 

First up we have my good pal Sam at Middle Class White Noise. Sam was essentially one of the first blog friends I ever made, one late night/early morning in the now pretty-much-entirely forgotten Mumuplayer. The original idea for this week was blogs that have influenced my blog and while that might not exactly be the case with Middle Class White Noise, me and Sam have traded band after band, covered the same artists, and the idea to put together a playlist is a not-so-secret homage to his enormous multi-hour playlists. I don't aspire for my blog to be more like his blog per-say but rather value Sam's taste and opinion more than that of the standard blogger. 

Sam's Contribution:

I won't lie, the concept for my playlist was borne out of laziness and a bit of an inflated ego. You see, my playlist isn't really about All Around Sound. Well, it is in the sense that it's deliberately music you might not find on All Around Sound and that you might find on MCWN. And even then, it's not entirely accurate since the first four songs are exactly the kind of songs--y'know, folky and poppy--you might find on All Around Sound. So sorry about that. But then, if you are a regular reader on All Around Sound, these might be the perfect songs to get you into the rest of this particular playlist. So, with a little forethought it all sounds pretty deliberate.
The original idea of the playlist, though, was based on a mental division between 'day' music and 'night' music. The former is made of largely upbeat songs that one might listen to in the car on a sunny day. The latter, night songs, which start with Fink's "Ever Since I was a Kid" are more relaxed and electronic tracks, the kind of stuff one would cool down to after a long day. The "night" songs bear the stronger trademark of MCWN while the "day" songs have the most overlap with All Around Sound. I'm not sure how successful the concept was, but I hope you like it.

You can listen to Sam's playlist on Spotify here. Curious what's on it? Here's a text version:
1. Stornoway - "Zorbing"
2. M. Ward - "Chinese Translation"
3. Hey Marseilles - "Rio"
4. Dan Mangan - "Road Regrets"
5. Pomegranates - "Osidius The Emphatic"
6. We Are Augustines - "Book of James"
7. The National - "Bloodbuzz Ohio"
8. Tears For Fears - "Everybody Wants To Rule The World"
9. Ducky - "Killing Time"
10. Fun. - "Some Nights"
11. Fink - "Ever Since I Was A Kid - Pt. 1"
12. Tycho - "Coastal Brake"
13. Shigeto - "Lineage"
14. Amon Tobin - "Easy Muffin"
15. The Cinematic Orchestra - "Channel 1 Suite"
16. The Antlers - "Rolled Together"
17. Gorillaz - "Hong Kong"
18. Blur - "Sweet Song"
19. Broken Social Scene - "Sentimental X's"
20. Art Blakey Quintet - "Once In A While (Live) (Rudy Van Gelder Edition)"
21. Bill Evans, Morgan Zetterlund - "So Long Big Time"

Enjoy!

Elle s'appelle - The Amazing World o' Stuff (2012)

Nostalgia can be a very dangerous thing. Whether it's keeping you trapped in the "glory days" of something or causes you to careless lash out at something because it challenges the idea that time and idealization have had a hand in making. Since British powerpop trio Elle s'appelle broke up  almost four years ago a not so secret part of me had hoped they would reform or at least put out the album they had been working on before they broke up. As its members went on to form new bands in new places - it seemed unlikely that I would get my wish. And then former bandleader Andy Donovan announced that Elle s'appelle's debut album would be released through his record label Rekordmeister Music this year. Color me intrigued, impressed, and excited.

Yesterday saw the release of Elle s'appelle's The Amazing World o' Stuff which turns out is less of a return to the Elle s'appelle of yesteryear and more of Donovan's own take on the band's sound and songs. He worked for years on creating new songs and updating old ones and enlisting the help of friends before deciding to release the album. Fans of Elle s'appelle might find such a thing a hard pill to swallow and yet, if you can get past the fact that the album isn't the work of Andy, Lucy, and Owen of old, with their unique keyboard, bass, drum fueled hyperactive pop, and just Andy Donovan (and others) you might find something worth listening to.

Even realizing how dangerous nostalgia could be in my enjoyment of the album there was one hurtle I had a tough time crossing. Namely Lucy Blakeley. Who's strong vocals seemed to fit puzzle-piece perfect with Donovan's. The lack of Lucy wasn't the problem however (though it would've been nice to have her) but rather that the female vocalist Donovan found to replace her is rather meek in her delivery. At least when compared to Blakeley. Considering my years and years of obsessive listening to the old demos on Myspace, it's going to take more than a handful listens for me to fully come to terms with Lucy's absence. That little caveat aside, it's rather nice to hear the old songs in a new context or just hear them again at all (since they're no longer available on Myspace). Andy Donovan's new tracks fit alongside the older ones pretty well, portraying the same high energy that made me fall in love with the band when I heard "Reasons Your Reasons Your Reasons Your"  featured on Eardrums Music's Summer-themed compilation. In fact, there's very little slow down in the album - it maintains the pretty much sky-high levels of energy from start to finish (there's a hint of a slowdown in "She Of Little Faith" but blink and you might miss it).

And yet despite the fact that The Amazing World o' Stuff is most likely to more greatly enjoyed by newcomers to Elle s'appelle's music, the album is still quite an enjoyable listen for everyone. Donovan's ability to write similar-sounding tunes is rather impressive and no doubt a testament to his songwriting talents. Nostalgic or not, The Amazing World o' Stuff is a fun album that contains a brand of nonstop powerpop that I wish was more prevalent. It may not be ushering in a newly formed Elle s'appelle into the world but it's a great piece of music to own.

The album is available for streaming and pay-what-you-want download at Rekordmeister's Bandcamp:
   

Peter Broderick - http://www.itstartshear.com (2012)

I’m certainly happy I got into Peter Broderick when I did – if I had gotten into him earlier the wait for his new album would’ve been excruciating, any later and I might’ve missed actually listening to his whole catalog before the new album. His first proper vocal album since 2008’s Home, http://itstartshear.com (yes that’s the name of the album as well as Broderick’s interactive album website) might very well be his most touchingly personal.

http://www.itstartshear.com expands on the various skill developed through Broderick other releases – takes Broderick’s compositional talents and uses them to create some of the most beautiful engaging arrangements, takes Broderick’s experimentation with technology and adds in effects when best employed for maximum effect. His latest album is without a doubt his most personal – featuring a song written by his father, an elegy for a deceased musical hero/mentor, through listening to the album (and also checking out the notes on the website) you learn far more about Broderick than you might in conversation or an interview. In an ironic twist, Broderick’s vocal album begins with about three minutes of instrumentals before he even utters his first word which is subsequently “I Am Piano” – a play on both its common meaning (the instrument which accompanies the song) and its musical definition (soft, subdued). “A Tribute to Our Letter Writing Days” details Broderick’s letter writing escapades with a friend/ex-lover using a repetitive “send a letter” to show the back and forth of their letter writing and featuring Peter’s sister Heather Woods Broderick adding some delicate female vocals that engage in the musical tug-of-war. Broderick then closes out the song from the point of view of the letter which has its own wants.

One of Peter Broderick’s friends Jana commented that his music isn’t edgy enough (which he addresses in the song “Bad Words”) and that might very well be true. Broderick’s music is never harsh or unpleasing, never offensive or grating but in lieu of that, Broderick’s music is always engaging: beautifully presented, artfully composed, and offhandedly revealing. Through Broderick’s music, and http://www.itstartshear.com  in particular, you really get the sense that you are getting to know someone – a musical conversation where Broderick reveals small tidbits of information about himself in exchange for your careful, unintrusive listening. Broderick might come off as the polite, nonconfrontational sort which might very well be true of the man’s personality but if you take the time to listen, you’re rewarded with eclectic blend of brilliantly crafted music, unexpected tension and release (“Asleep”)  and occasional possibly unintended humor (“Bad Words”, “Asleep”).  Each track consists of something highlight-worthy which is exactly what you need in an album like this – Broderick’s songs are crafted with exceptional love and care that result in some of the loveliest enriching musical experiences. http://www.itstartshear.com  might very well be Peter Broderick’s best album to date toeing the appropriate line of emotional revealing singer/songwriter lyricism, elegant composition, and music written for music’s sake that manages to create a well-rounded album you’ll have trouble putting down.

You can listen to Peter Broderick's new album http:www.itstartshear.com on his interactive website, the title automatically links to. Also on Spotify. 

Elle s'appelle to release debut album

Almost two months ago, I saw seemingly random status update from Liverpool band 28 Costumes announcing that they would be releasing their 2nd album This Band Has Eaten All Our Money via Used Vinyl Club/Rekordmeister Music. Intrigued I went to the page and it announced not only that but a slew of other exciting releases - like the release of Elle s'appelle's debut album The Amazing World 'o Stuff.

Some background: Rekordmeister Music is a label set up in 2008 by now-defunct Elle s'appelle bandleader Andy Donovan, members of the band 28 Costumes, as well as their manager. They've released singles for bands House That Jack Built and Hallo...I love you! as well as the first single from 28 Costumes sophomore album "This Band Has Eaten All Our Money". This year they started The Used Vinyl Club a project featuring monthly limited edition releases and performances at Mello Mello in Liverpool.  

There's actually releases from a whole bunch of Liverpool bands worth checking out like House That Jack Built and Voo. So if you're interested, make sure and check them out here or here.

You can hear two new Elle s'appelle tracks: