Friday Music Day

FMD: Jan20, 2012

58 Comments

I should probably shut up about Lana Del Rey, but after her awful SNL performance last week, I went through the comments sections of several websites to read people's thoughts. (I was really hoping to find a writer at Pitchfork or somewhere similiar to have a thoughtful take on it rather than comments, but no dice.)

I was surprised to see that some people were taking a face-value reading of the lyrics of "Video Games":

I'm in his favorite sundress, Watching me get undressed, take that body downtown
I say you the bestest, Lean in for a big kiss, Put his favorite perfume on
Go play a video game
It's you, it's you, it's all for you...

With her flat, dispassionate delivery, I thought this was an ironic song, talking about her dedication to a boyfriend who isn't showing that much interest in her. Like she's realizing that there's nothing there. (Kindof like a reversal of Lydia Loveless's "More Like Them". [Man have I got my obsessions, I should really try to think about other artists from time to time.]) But several commenters made it sound like this was a devoted love song.

However, if I don't pay attention to comments on news or baseball sites, why should what a few comments on music sites carry any weight with me. Mostly, I was just surprised that people would get a different interpretation from this song: I thought it was pretty clear, and my levels of obsession led me to write these two hundred words on it.

Finally: this is probably just for Nibbish, who seems to be the only other person here who digs her music as much as I do.

Let the Random Ten Rumpus begin!

58 thoughts on “FMD: Jan20, 2012”

  1. Every time you mention Lana, I think "Corn my good man, you should really go check her out. After all, he was the one who introduced you to Lydia!" Then I promptly forget. Maybe I'll go do that right after I participate in the rumpus.

    1. Seamus Ennis Jig / Connie O'Connell's Matt Molloy & Sean Keane*
    2. Party Nelly Furtado
    3. Positively 4th Street Robert Zimmerman
    4. After the Thrill Is Gone The Eagles
    5. Gemini Dream The Moody Blues

    6. Turn Feeder
    7. Hymn To Freedom Oscar Peterson
    8. Tom Dooley Kingston Trio
    9. Hail, Hail Pearl Jam
    10. Get By Talib Kweli
    Bonus: Biloxi Jimmy Buffett

    *The flute and fiddle player from The Cheiftains...if you like traditional Irish music, these guys are top notch.

      1. She reminds me a bit of Tori Amos. That's a good thing in my book. I very much liked Video Games.

      3. Avoid her live clips.

        She's a lot like Salem in that if you happened to see a live clip when you're first getting into the music, it'll turn you off quickly and completely.

        She's totally fake and manufactured, but who cares? Her studio recorded stuff is great. Can't wait for the album.

      4. I do like Lana del Rey's music, but her contrived persona is fingernails on a chalkboard to me. Between her music videos that look like a tumblr account filled with hipstagram photos taken by a narcissistic teenager and the mind-numbingly stupid phrase "gangsta Nancy Sinatra," it's not easy to take her seriously.

        1. Oh, I don't know that I dig her seriously, so much as I just enjoy the sound and texture of her music. I have a feeling that I'll really enjoy her album, and that I'll make an absolute point of never seeing another of her live performances.

          1. Yeah her music isn't bad, especially for a studio creation. I will probably listen to her album a few times and then forget about it completely in a month or two.

        3. I just watched an interview with her on NME.com or some British rag like that.
          Reminds me that I don't like hearing most musicians talk about their art... I once saw Perry Farrell talking about a Jane's Addiction song back on MTV, and it made me think that maybe they found that one monkey that can type Shakespeare.

          I don't know how much more contrived LDR is than most other musicians with an "image". She did an album for a small label that apparently wasn't promoted. (Maybe a vanity project? I know that its widely reported that her father is very wealthy. Maybe she's like a really, really good Rebecca Black. I'm sure her father's wealth helped her keep working on music -- with actual producers and stuff -- while living in NYC, rather than having to find a job or two.) If anything, that album sounds more derivative of other music than her new music (& a few demos before that album sound like bad Jewel songs).

          I interpret it as: when that didn't get traction, she stepped back, thought "what do I want to sound like?" (as opposed to what to others want her to sound like?), and kindof came up with this idea that she's since clumsily communicated to music reporters.

          The videos she assembled herself when she was unsigned. I thought their tumblr-as-music-video aesthetic shows how she was working on her sound and aesthetic herself over time. Yeah, a bit "narcissistic teenager", but sometimes, that's what people are, even when they're 25. Of course, I've probably spent two hours total in my life looking at people's tumblrs so it might be different if you're over-exposed to that.

          In between children 2 and 3, my wife was trying to put together some of the songs she had written, and clean up her stage performance, and I watched with her some DVD lessons on how to be more yourself in your music and performances, and so on. Not to be more contrived, but to be more defined, and to have a goal of "This is what music I'm trying to make". So maybe I'm just being generous by assuming that Lana Del Rey was going through a similar process.

          Whatever, I count six songs so far that I love listening to many times. If Brit Spears or Kat Perry or Lotti Gaga or some American Idol winner was the singer, I'd love them just the same no matter their provenance. But for some reason, I'm a bit fascinated with everyone else's debate (and even my own reactions). Which is why I've been looking for thoughtful pieces about it.

          I really do need to shut up about her though.
          Anyone want to say bad things about Björk's last album instead?

  2. T. Monk "Well You Needn't" Genius of Modern Music Vol. 1
    Paul Westerberg "Born For Me" Suicaine Gratifaction
    Jayhawks "You and I" Tomorrow the Green Grass (legacy edition)
    Superdrag "Bloody Hell" 4 track rock!!!
    Of Montreal "Predictably Sulking Sara" Aldhils Arboretum
    Rolling Stones "Connection" Between the Buttons
    Pavement "Stereo" Brighten the Corners
    Byrds "Hickory Wind" Sweetheart of the Rodeo
    Unicorns "Tough Love" Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone
    Dylan/Band "Tears of Rage" Basement Tapes

  3. .
    .
    01. Song From the End of the World - The Waterboys - Room to Roam
    02. Celtic Ray - Van Morrison & The Chieftains - Irish Heartbeat
    03. Lover's Rock - Clash - London Calling
    04. Sarah Smiles* - Bram Tchaikovsky - Strange Man, Changed Man
    05. Legendary Hearts - Lou Reed - Between Thought and Expression
    06. Noche de Ronda - Charlie Haden/Gonzalo Rubalcaba - Nocturne
    07. Exodus - Bob Marley - Exodus
    08. Sick of You - Lou Reed - New York
    09. Aryan Mist - Van Morrison - Beautiful Vision
    10. Do It Again - Steely Dan - A Decade of Steely Dan

    * Nothing to do with Hall & Oates, Bram T was a new wave band led by the former lead guitarist of pub rock legends The Motors.

  4. 'Stormy Sky' - The Kinks Sleepwalker
    'I Gotta Get Drunk' - The Little Willies The Little Willies
    'Stellar' - Incubus Make Yourself
    'Seconds' - U2 War
    'Nowhere Man' - The Beatles Rubber Soul

    'Whistle For the Choir' - The Fratellis Costello Music
    'Koka Kola' - The Clash London Calling
    'Alison' - Elvis Costello My Aim Is True
    'Move Over' - Dave Davies AFL1-3603
    'What's Your Problem' - The Zutons You Can Do Anything

    Bonus: Nick Lowe 'Ragin Eyes' from the old Letterman show
    httpv://youtu.be/oZTnJGOdqxM

  5. 1. Katy B Ft. Ms Dynamite “Lights On (Skream Remix)” Lights On EP
    2. Katy Herzig “Free My Mind” Ten out of Tenn Vol 1 (Compilation)
    3. Linfinity “Babel” Live at Marcata: Demos
    4. Sbtrkt “Wildfire (Drumma Boy Remix ft. Shabazz Palaces)” Wildfire
    5. Lennon/Jon* “I'm Last” Smoking Donut

    6. Massive Attack “Karmacoma (The Napoli Trip)” Daddy G: DJ-Kicks
    7. Christina Aguilera “What a Girl Wants (Eddie Arroyo Down Tempo Mix)” What a Girl Wants (Remixes)
    8. Tricky “Vent” Pre-Millennium Tension
    9. Tim Hecker “Dungeoneering” Harmony in Ultraviolet
    T. James McMurty “Bayou Tortous” James McMurty/Jason Isbell Tour Sampler

    Notes:
    5. Lennon Bone (Ha Ha Tonka's dummer) and Jon Ulasien make some instrumental breakbeat music that sounds kindof like Minnesota's Dosh.

  6. i picked up the "video games" single to see what all the fuss is about, but have only given it one distracted listen so far so i'll currently reserve any judgment.

  7. .

    * Marked - EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
    * Teeth of Lions Rule the Divine - Earth - Earth 2
    * Back to Your Heart - Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond
    * Death Blooms - Mudvayne - L.D. 50
    * Deathblow - Deftones - (self-titled)
    * Meditasi, Head (from Shadowbang) - Bang on a Can All-Stars - Big Beautiful Dark and Scary (E. Ziporyn)
    * Old Enough - The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely
    * Mocking Solemnity - Sunn O))) - Flight of the Behemoth
    * No Hassle Night - The Dead Weather - Horehound
    * Nothing 2 - Moritz von Oswald Trio - Live in New York

    Going to see Patti Lupone & Mandy Patinkin with my wife tomorrow night. You can check out my list and decide who bought those tickets for who for Christmas.

  8. Brad Paisley--Hold Me In Your Arms
    Gram Parsons--How Much I've Lied
    Ben Folds--Gone
    Rilo Kiley--The Execution of all Things
    Roger Miller--King of the Road
    Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders--The Game of Love
    The Beatles--I Call Your Name
    Tommy James & The Shondells--Crimson & Clover
    Creedence Clearwater Revival--Lookin' Out My Back Door
    Alison Krauss & Brad Paisley--Whiskey Lullaby

      1. Funny enough, the only reason I posted today was because I was hoping I could get some lame ass band boy songs onto the 60,000 comment plaque. Oh well.

  9. Yeah, I eagerly watched the SNL performances. I knew they were likely to be terrible, but I still wanted to know for sure. They were pretty bad. The wife left the room.

    I didn't think there was any other way to view 'Video Games' other than semi-ironic detachment. I mean, it's practically broadcasted in the title, for crying out loud. The titular 'Video Games' aren't a bonding experience, they're just another thing driving home the fact that the dude is an inattentive jerk.

        1. Rather than commenting on 22-day-old blog posts, I'll make this comment here:

          I really disliked what I heard from James Blake in 2011. Once he added his vocals, it just fell apart for me. At first I thought I'd give his Feist cover a pass. So that makes "The Wilhelm Scream" the last song of his I've wanted to hear. Since then, everything's grated on me. Much like those (theoretical) Matrix Sequels, the album actually made me reassess his prior works. Klavierwerke just doesn't sound as good to me as it used to, because I can imagine where he wants to put his voice.

          1. Huh. I had the exact opposite reaction, but then, I really need to give a relisten to Klavierwerke. I thought the vocals added another dimension that I'd always kind of missed in his music. I love the way "The Wilhelm Scream" starts to fade into static, only to come back for the one last line. I will admit that the stuff that I've heard since the album last year has been pretty awful (the essential mix he did was pretty good, though). Maybe it just struck me right at the proper time?

  10. .

    01. Crimson Glory - "Transcendence", Transendence
    02. Amon Amarth - "Bloodshed", Versus the World
    03. Ensiferum - "Deathbringer From the Sky", Victory Songs
    04. Sodom - "Nuctemeron", Obsessed by Cruelty
    05. Accept - "Restless and Wild", Restless and Wild
    06. Judas Priest - "Heading Out to the Highway", Point of Entry
    07. Finntroll - "Midnattens Widunder", Midnattens Widunder
    08. Dark Tranquillity - "The Wonders at Your Feet", Haven
    09. Danzig - "Mother", Danzig
    10. Grave Digger - "Son of Evil", 25 to Live

    1. 09. Danzig - "Mother", Danzig

      I remember that song. I think I need to add that one to my mp3 player.

      2. Little known fact - Glenn Danzig now works at Cub Foods in Chanhassen. (At least he looks a lot lot Glenn Danzig.)

  11. 1. Love and Peace -- U2
    2. Polly -- The Kinks
    3. Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us -- Robert Plant and Alison Kraus
    4. If You're Feeling Sinister -- Belle and Sebastain
    5. One of these Days -- Velvet Underground
    6. Cables -- Big Black
    7. John Brown -- Bob Dylan
    8. Good Riddance -- Green Day
    9. Son of a Preacher Man -- Dusty Springfield
    10. Wild Horses -- The Rolling Stones

    Bonus: Think I'm in Love -- Beck

  12. Only a 15-minute commute, so unless I get an inordinate number of Coachwhips and Jay Reatard songs, the 10 random thing doesn't work so well. For example, today, "Sun God" by Cut Copy came on first. It's a great song, but it used up the entire commute.

  13. I don't have very much music on me at the moment, but I think I remember how this is done.

    1. Heartless Bastards - "Nothing Seems the Same" - The Mountain
    2. Explosions in the Sky - "Last Known Surroundings" - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
    3. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Pin" - Fever to Tell
    4. Noisettes - "Scratch Your Name" - What's the Time, Mr. Wolf?
    5. Joanna Newsom - "In California" - Have One On Me
    6. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Hysteric" - It's Blitz!
    7. Heartless Bastards - "Gray" - Heartless Bastards
    8. Girls - "Love Like a River" - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
    9. The Black Keys - "Gold on the Ceiling" - El Camino
    10. The Weeknd - "Life of the Party" - Thursday

      1. I did come around. It took awhile, but I learned to accept the heavy synth beats. I still think it would have been better if they had let Nick Zinner rock out more, but oh well. And it's impossible for me to stay mad at Karen O for very long.

      1. I just got my tickets the other day! I am super excited. I'm also really grateful they moved it to the mainroom after selling out the Entry.

  14. This is definitely one of my best lists.

    01. Dead Kennedys - "Winnebago Warrior" from Plastic Surgery Disasters
    02. Mudhoney - "Halloween" from Superfuzz Bigmuff
    03. The Streets - "Let's Push Things Forward" from Original Pirate Material
    04. HEALTH - "In Violet" from Get Color
    05. Anthrax - "Packaged Rebellion" from Sound of White Noise

    06. T.I. ft. UGK - "Front Back" from King
    07. Glass Candy - "Last Nite I Met a Costume" from B/E/A/T/B/O/X
    08. Queens of the Stone Age - "Hangin' Tree" from Songs for the Deaf
    09. UGK - "Diamonds & Wood" from Ridin' Dirty
    10. Curren$y - "This is the Life" from Weekend at Burnies

    And I'm so glad it's FMD. I had a couple things I wanted to share. First, last week I was talking about how juiced I was that the new Third Sight album dropped. Turns out, they're streaming it for free on Myspace. They're my favorite hip hop group who currently works. They're really great. It's intelligent without taking itself too seriously, which I appreciate a whole lot. If you like hip hop, give them a spin. They're way underappreciated, so I want to do my best to spread their fantastic music everywhere I can.

    The other thing I wanted to share is a stream of Themes for an Imaginary Film by Symmetry, another Johnny Jewel (he of Chromatics, Glass Candy, and Desire) project. I adore basically everything the man does. Finding out about this put me onto a huge Chromatics & Glass Candy kick. Again. If you like atmoshperic electronic music, give it a whirl. And if you like this, listen to all his other bands. It's all awesome as hell.

    2. I actually had listened to Symmetry (well the first half), and I thought it pretty good, but I probably would have forgotten about it until you linked to it. I'll get to the second half tomorrow.

  15. Might be Title Track Day today.

    1. "Circuital" - My Morning Jacket Circuital
    2. "The Magician" - Jason Isbell Sirens of the Ditch
    3. "Admiral Fell Promises" - Sun Kil Moon Admiral Fell Promises
    4. "The Noose" - A Perfect Circle Thirteenth Step
    5. "Easy Beat" - Dr. Dog East Beat
    6. "Pink Triangle" - Weezer Pinkerton
    7. "Expectation" - Tame Impala Innerspeaker
    8. "New York, New York" - Ryan Adams Gold
    9. "Heart + Soul" - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Take Them On, On Your Own
    10. "I'm the Man Who Loves You" - Wilco Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

    1. St Vincent had an Elvis Costello 'tribute' the other night on Conan

      httpv://youtu.be/NnKbRF0TCVA

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