Indie Music Chatter

Call me a scheming dad but I take a very serious interest in how my son will develop his music taste. My wife loves to tell people that one of my biggest fears is that Zach will grow up liking the kind of trash that bombards almost all radio stations. I’ve been labelled a music snob but I really don’t care about the name calling. All of the insults are worth it if I can ensure that my son will grow up with a sophisticated ear and an inherent love for music that really counts. No Britneys or Rihannas for me and my son, thank you.

One way that I am laying the foundation of his early music education is by playing him lullabies when he’s asleep. But forget the tired Sesame Street or Barney lullabies, I’m into something a little less mainstream.

In my lullaby arsenal are the three albums of Lullatone. Over the course of four albums, Lullatone has managed to maintain an almost child like simplicity and beauty to its music but anchored on really heavy concepts. For example, while the first two albums dealt with sine wave harmonics in order to create deceptively simple soundscapes, Little Songs about Raindrops saw the band use toy instruments exclusively in creating an album that is beautiful beyond belief.

If you have children, please do them a favor and just use Lullatone’s albums as an early music education for your children. Believe me, you’ll thank me for it in the future.

I just came back from the record store after having scored two albums by The Cure. I’ve been collecting the band’s Deluxe Edition reprintings of their old albums. These are remastered versions of their seminal early releases with an accompanying second CD filled with rareties as well as an exhaustive booklet that chronicles the band at the time of recording the said album.

These Deluxe Editions are a bit pricey but then I tell myself that I’m actually buying a piece of music history, a time capsule of where The Cure was at creatively during that particular point in their existence as one of the most promising post punk bands to emerge from England in the late 70’s - early 80’s.

So far, I’ve practically bought the whole catalogue. I just bought The Top and Seventeen Seconds today, which just leaves me with Faith (which was not in stock) and The Glove’s Blue Sunshine (a one-off music project/collaboration of Robert Smith and Siouxsie and The Banshees, Steve Severin). Consider me a happy camper today, especially when I almost reverently slipped those two albums among the four other Cure Deluxe Editions that I already have.

My collection of The Cure albums will never be complete though until I find a copy (long out of print) of Tributo a the Cure: Porque No Puedo Ser Tu. This is a collection of classic Cure songs as interpreted by Latin artists. Let me stress this: these are not just a bunch of covers but rather a reworking or reinterpretation of Cure songs. And to top it off, it’s sung in Spanish. I fell in love with this album when I chanced upon an MP3 rip in one site I visited. I’ve been looking for a copy of this album ever since. If you’ve got a lead on where I can get do email me and I’ll be forever indebted.

One album that I have been recommending to friends over the last few weeks is The Klaxons‘ Myths of the Future. This is one of those rare albums where, when you listen to it, you know that the boundaries of music is being challenged again.
When I first heard Gravity’s Rainbow and Golden Skans, I immediately knew that The Klaxons are attempting to come out with a new music hybrid that aims to meld different music genres into a new, as yet unseen, form. I knew that I was at the cusp of some great shift in the world of music and the trio from London is at the center of it all. Forget what you may hear about this so called New Rave movement the Klaxons are supposed to be spearheading. Get rid of the labels and just enjoy their music — one of the funkiest and coolest sounds you will hear in 2007.

The Klaxons, London, New Rave

The Melvins was one of the bands that influenced the growth and eventual explosion of the Seattle grunge scene. Kurt Cobain would often talk of their influence in shaping the music of Nirvana.

What not many people might know though is that The Melvins also played a very crucial role in forming the classic Nirvana lineup. It was The Melvins’ Buzz Osborne and Dale Crover who gave the number of Krist Novoselic to Dave Grohl. In a way, Cobain can really claim that The Melvins’ influenced their music. Grohl’s frenetic and very energetic style completely complemented the Nirvana sound and we’ve got The Melvins to thank for it.

The Melvins, Nirvana, Kurt Cobain

Pinback, to my mind, is one of the best kept secrets in the indie music scene. The duo of Rob Crow and Armistead Burwell Smith IV have, for over the course of three albums, made the kind of intense layered pop that are staggering works of ethereal beauty. Their first album This is a Pinback CD (also known simply as Pinback) is on my list of highly recommended albums for anyone who wants to get into indie music.

The great news is that Pinback is about to release a new album on September this year entitled Autumn of The Seraphs. This is their first album of original works since 2004’s critically acclaimed Summer in Abbadon (note to self, imperative to get a copy of this album ASAP before the new one drops into stores).

I am waiting with bated breath for the new album. Summer in Abbadon saw the duo approach their trademark sound from a new direction. I’d love to see if the progression to change their sound will carry on with the new one. Whatever they decide to do though I’ll be there to support the band. They are one of the few artists that have proven to have a very strong consistent body of work in terms of excellence. Any music fan should really check this band out because they are really missing out on a lot.

I think The Gossip one of the hippest and most booty-shaking bands around. And Beth Ditto is just simply a cultural icon. I find her frankness quite refreshing especially in the midst of a music industry that is just so full of pompous asses that promote anorexia and low self worth.

Do check out their video for Jealous Girls, which is just such a great throwback to those cheesy music videos from the 80’s. I made a friend watch this video and he told me that he can’t quite put his finger on it but there is something strange about the video. When I said that it may be Beth Ditto’s weight, he was surprised that it was indeed her excess poundage. He said that it is so strange to see a woman of Ditto’s girth appearing in a music video. That’s what I love about Beth Ditto, she provokes and changes perceptions without even uttering a single word.

The Gossip, Beth Ditto, Jealous Girls

A good friend of mine who is based in France messaged me in Yahoo Messenger last night to inform me that he was one of the lucky people who got to snag tickets for the kickoff leg of the new Smashing Pumpkins tour, last May 22.

Rupert happily reported that the new material from their forthcoming album, [b]Zeitgeist[/b], was some strong stuff. Although he was cautious not to say it was a return to form, he said that it sounded so much better than the songs on [b]Machina: Machines of the Gods[/b].

What’s got me excited though are the inclusion of two indie vets in the new lineup. With the non-participation of both James Iha and D’arcy, Billy Corgan enlisted the help of Jeff Schroeder and Ginger Reyes on rhythm guitar and bass guitar duties, respectively.
Schroeder is a member of the Los Angeles noise pop outfit The Lassie Foundation. Ginger Reyes (aka Ginger Sling), on the other hand, is a member of the Cali-based Halo Friendlies. She has also released a few EPs as a solo artist under her Ginger Sling moniker.

Corgan really has a great eye for indie talent. In his previous band Zwan, he teamed up with David Pajo from seminal band Slint and Chavez’s Matt Sweeney (who incidentally came out with a totally kick-ass album with Will Oldham entitled [b]Superwolf[/b]).

Smashing Pumpkins, The Lassie Foundation, Ginger Sling, Slint

Former Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell is one cool cat. The artist extraordinaire has always loved to shake things up and his entire body of work as well as the many causes that he supports can attest to this.

Back in 2005, Farrell formed his new band Satellite Party. I’ve always been intrigued with how the album will sound especially with all of the rumors and small tidbits of news that I was hearing about his new project.

Well, the wait is now over. Satellite Party’s album [b]Ultra Payloaded[/b] will drop on to record stores on May 29. But for those who can’t wait, the whole album is being streamed at Satellite Party’s MySpace page. Go check it out!

Perry Farrell, Satellite Party, MySpace

Elliott Smith was one of the best singer-songwriters of our generation. It was such heartbreaking news when it was reported that the troubled artist committed suicide back in 2003.

Fortunately for fans of his astounding work, Smith was a prolific artist despite his battles with alcohol and drug abuse. The year 2004 saw the release of [i]From A Basement on a Hill[/i], the album he was working on at the time of his death.

Now in 2007, a number of important Elliott Smith – related materials are being released to the public. First up is the double album [i]New Moon[/i]. This is a collection of rareties that Smith recorded between 1994 through 1997. The album is enjoying much acclaim from both critics and fans alike.

Recently it was also announced that a photo book Smith, simply entitled [i]Elliott Smith[/i], is scheduled for release in November. The book compiles almost 200 photos taken by Autumn de Wilde on Smith. De Wilde took the picture of Smith that was used as the cover for 2000’s [i]Figure 8[/i]. The book will also come with a CD that contains five previously unreleased acoustic songs that Smith recorded at the Largo Club in Los Angeles.

For fans who miss Smith and his powerfully poignant songs, this is a godsend and a wonderful addition to Smith’s artistic legacy.

[tags]Elliott Smith, Figure 8, New Moon, From a Basement on a Hill[/]

I’ve been a big fan of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club since day one and have been a willing passenger in their awesome music journey. The first two albums – BRMC and Take Them On, On Your Own – established the band’s sonic template of 70’s garage rock melded with the psychedelic rock and noise of The Jesus and Mary Chain.

What really threw fans for a loop was the release of Howl, their third album. The band effectively left the bombast of the first two albums and came out with an album that can best be described as blues and folk with rock overtones. There were some fans who actually hated the album. As for me, I completely loved it. This is the kind of courage and self confidence that I look for in artists. They are not afraid to alienate an established fanbase. They make music for music’s sake, which is a true mark of the indie attitude.

With Baby 81, BRMC has returned to their more familiar rock sound but this time, they have rounded it out with the experimentations they made in Howl. This makes for a far more satisfying record for me. Baby 81 offers a more mature sound that fully encompasses what the band sonically represents.

The lead off track Took Out a Loan is like a comforting tap on the shoulder for fans who were left with their jaws hanging when they popped their Howl CDs on their players. It was a reassuring “Hey, we’re back to rock your socks off!” But alongside the rockers, BRMC has deftly included Howl-like blues/folk/hybrids like 666 Conductor. Of course, the band also put in some surprising inclusions like the 9 minute epic American X that is so full of power and swagger you won’t notice the track time.

Overall, Baby 81 is another notable effort from Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. They are now 4 - 0 in delivering a quality release. I hope this streak continues because they are one of the few American rock bands out there that still hasn’t lost the real essence of rock.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Baby 81, Howl

A few weeks ago, I discovered that Amazon.com was holding this nifty sale on indie CDs. This was like waving a red flag to a bull. Indie CDs for 9.99 or less?! I am so there. So I browsed through the selections and ordered an initial batch of CDs (I still need to be conscious about my budget). One of the best titles on my recent haul was the remastered and expanded CD of Pavement’s Slanted and Enchanted.

Slanted and Enchanted, for me, is one of the most important albums of the 90’s. It practically ushered in the indie rock movement and served as template to many other indie rock acts that emerged in its wake. As most seminal albums go, Slanted and Enchanted quietly arrived and slowly built its reputation as a rock classic through incessant recommendations from fans and the support of independent and underground music magazines. This happened at a time when there was still no internet to speak of (well, no internet the way it is today) and the indie movement survived on just word of mouth and the enthusiasm of its supporters. I myself discovered Slanted and Enchanted when a friend of mine gave me an old zine in which one writer was raving about it. Of course, I just had to get a copy just to see what the fuss was all about. I still remember when I got my hands on the cassette tape and popped it in my player. I wasn’t expecting much – but boy was I in for the surprise of my life!

From the opening beats of Summer Babe I knew that Stephen Malkmus and company has made an album was going to knock the wind out of me. The world melted away as I fell into the world that Pavement was painting to me through its music. Here is a bunch of songs that sounds so effortless and nonchalant but at the same time almost sags with its creative weight. I played the life out of that tape and when my tape practically disintegrated I bought the CD.

And now I have the remastered CD on my hands and guess what? I’m still having a lot of fun listening to it! This is the mark of a great album – 15 years after it was released and it still sounds as relevant today as it was then.

+++++

I just want to give a shout out to my dad, who I always remember whenever I play Slanted and Enchanted. This was his favorite album too and he would always request that I play Zurich is Stained for him.

I love you, dad. Kisses to heaven…

Pavement, indie rock, Slanted and Enchanted

I’d like to fire off the first salvo of Indie Music Chatter by telling you guys why I love indie music.

I’ve been an avid music fan since I was a small kid. I remember listening to an aunt’s collection of Scorpions albums when I was just ten years old and my Dad’s prized Perez Prado albums. Not a particularly significant start to a life spent obsessively collecting albums, right? But I think it was wonderful that I got to experience a diverse range of music genres at an early age because it made me more open to listen to any type of music.

The real journey though started in high school when I got into punk and the so-called “New Wave” movement in the UK. The music that I got into then was so nonmainstream that I had to literally copy off friends’ cassette tapes (yes, I’m THAT old) because it’s the only source of this type of music I can get. The music of The Cure, Siouxsie and The Banshees, Comsat Angels, The Exploited, Blitz and Suicide Squad proved that great music can be found not on the radio or on television but among like minded friends who share the same passion for listening to great music – music that is not shackled by major label formulas or a conscious attempt to sell albums. This is music that is made to be heard.

I hope this blog will be that kind of friend to you.

The Cure, Siouxsie and The Banshees, UK

Welcome to Indie Music Chatter — one new corner on the net where you can read about what is happening in the world of indie music. You will read about bands and artists here that not many people outside of music snobs and indie kids know about. It is my aim to bring the amazing works of these musicians to a much wider audience. Because frankly, we can only take so much manufactured pop and rock, right? Why settle for predigested music pap when there is adventurous, exciting and original music that you can just as easily get?

The indie music movement is one of the best kept secrets in the world of music. Forget your assumptions that indie is just about rock — because it’s not. It runs the gamut of all genres — rock, pop, jazz, blues… and this is a blog that will tell you all about it with gusto.

I hope you take that journey with me!

indie music, rock, pop