Okay. I ditched the PC and bought an iMac a couple of months ago and had to learn how to use a computer all over again... this time, the Apple way. Still learning. (So, how do you word-search an internet page? Ugh.) That's why I haven't updated my site since the last time I updated my site. But I think I have figured out just enough to finally post something Fresh & Easy... and with very few calories!
After listening to about 200 new releases this last week, only a half-dozen satisfied my inner-aural. Hey, what can I say? My ears are very picky.
"DANNY, DAKOTA AND THE WISHING WELL"-A SILENT FILM
"DANNY, DAKOTA AND THE WISHING WELL"-A SILENT FILM
The very first time I heard this song I said, "Wow." I'm not a huge fan of the minute-long Eighties-styled synthesized opening on this track... but when it kicks in, look out! Behind their Springsteen "Dancing In the Dark" back-beat, the lyrics tell a love story not unlike Billy Joel's "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant."
According to A Silent Film lead vocalist Rob Stevenson, "'Danny, Dakota and the Wishing Well' is a love song to a bygone era of Americana that inspired us in books and films when we were growing up in England."
"DON'T LEAVE ME (NE ME QUITTE PAS)"-REGINA SPEKTOR
"Ne Me Quitte Pas" is considered an international, often-covered, pop classic that was written by Belgium singer-songwriter Jacques Brel over 40-years ago. Apparently Regina has been fond of the song for well over a decade now and has finally come up with a version worthy of her new album, What We Saw From the Cheap Seats, which will be available at the end of this month. Her version of this song -- about love in Paris -- is a whole lot of "fun" with a good dose of "cute."
If you already have Spektor's "On the Radio" on the iPod... this one is an easy "Oui!"
"BLOOD FOR POPPIES"-GARBAGE
I remember the first time I heard Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit." I instantly fell in love with the song's vibe but couldn't, for the life of me, figure out what the hell Kurt was singing. Same vibe here.
“The song is meant to feel sort of like an abstract dream,” explains Garbage lead vocalist Shirley Manson. “The inspiration came from a story I had read in The Los Angeles Times about the opium trade and also from watching the documentary ‘Restrepo.’ It’s not literal in any sense whatsoever but it’s a song about disorientation and delusion and the human struggle to stay sane in the face of insanity.”
Works for me. Thanks Butch!
"HOUDINI"-FOSTER THE PEOPLE
"HOUDINI"-FOSTER THE PEOPLE
"DON'T STOP (COLOR ON THE WALLS)"-FOSTER THE PEOPLE
The LA trio known as Foster the People (who were just here in Southern California at the Coachella Music Fest last month) came up with a couple of wonderfully unique melodic studio pieces which can be found alongside the overplayed "Pumped Up Kicks" on the band's just released debut album Torches.
"Don't Stop" -- which got a big boost in iTunes sales when it was used in a Nissan Versa TV commercial -- was apparently written about what a four-year old would do if it ruled the world. Their latest, the ultra-catchy "Houdini," is an uptempo confessional about being on stage. Both are guaranteed to get repeated listens.
What else? Well, check these out...
"CALL ME MAYBE"-CARLY RAE JEPSEN
"WE TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN"-BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN
