Switching to literature tonight

I'm studying publishing, so that qualifies me to give my opinion on literary stuff, right?

I'm working on (read: procrastinating) a short assignment for one of my classes and it's gotten me thinking about Gone With the Wind. I love when classic literature like this still resonates in the 21st century. She may wear ridiculous dresses and use dated language, but at her core Scarlett O'Hara is the quintessential 21st century woman. She's independent and capable, but she really just wants to be loved. And at the end of the day, isn't that what we're all looking for?

Back again, and an album review!

Hi, blog. Sorry I'm so lazy, but I did warn you, so you can't be too mad. I would say I've been really busy, but that would be a lie. I haven't been busy at all. I've watched five seasons of "Say Yes to the Dress" on Netflix in the past two weeks. So there's no good excuse for not writing, except that it's hard .

I mentioned in a previous post that one of my favorite artists, Amy Lavere, is putting out a new album this summer. It's called "Stranger Me" and the US release date is July 19th. If you live in Memphis, the album release party is tomorrow night at the Levitt Shell. If you live anywhere but Boston, check out her tour dates--she'll be all over the country this summer. "Stranger Me" is streaming on NPR until the 19th. It's been my go-to music for the past week.

I should preface this next part by saying that as a longtime fan, I was expecting a lot--maybe too much--from this album. That's not to say I don't like it, because I really do, but it explains why I might be overly critical at times.

If her music is any indication, Amy has had some seriously bad luck with relationships. I like to feel sorry for myself sometimes, but her suffering kicks my suffering's ass.

At this point, a real music reviewer might pick a couple of standout tracks to discuss in more depth, but I can't choose just a few tracks when I have intelligent, fascinating things to say about almost all of them! Best thing about blogging: no word limit.

-"Damn Love Song" perfectly captures the resentment that builds up toward the end of a relationship. "Here's your damn love song, and don't it say it all."
-"You Can't Keep Me"-Supposedly this one's about quitting a job, but it works as an angry breakup song, too.
-"Red Banks"- This is one of my favorites. She talks about walking along the river (she doesn't get specific, but come on--the Mississippi is the only real river) with a suspicious lover...then suddenly she's insisting, "I didn't push him in. Lord, he'd a killed me if I did." She so pushed him. This homicidal tendency is a holdover from her earlier albums, in which she made numerous references to doing away with a lover. I choose to interpret this as her being an empowered woman, not a crazy bitch. There's a difference. Seriously!
-"A Great Divide"- Post-breakup euphoria. She's left his ass and is sitting on a beach, finally starting to feel happy again. Favorite line: "I can't stop looking into the sun, into the sea. I love how the sunrise is blinding me."
-"Often Happens"-That sinking feeling you get when you realize something is off in your relationship, and that desperate desire to ignore it--"My heart keeps lyin', sayin' I'll be fine."
-"Candle Mambo"-Captain Beefheart cover. Odd, but in a good way.
-"Cry My Eyes Out"-Just a sad song about being unhappy and not knowing how to keep going. What I love about this song is the use of prepared piano. Mostly because I felt very pleased with myself when I recognized it as prepared piano and knew what that meant. Thank you, eleventh grade music history.



I like most of the songs, but I'm not as enthralled with this album as I should be because I heard most of these songs live before I heard the studio versions. I'm always going to prefer a live version to the perfectly produced studio recording. Also, I love the touring band, which includes a violin. There are plenty of guitar-bass-drums bands, but the violin gives them a different sound.

My overall assessment of "Stranger Me": it has a lot of great tracks that are fantastic live, but the album just feels over-produced. Amy is enunciating too much, which takes away from the Memphis charm. Jim Dickinson produced "Anchors & Anvils" (Amy's previous album), which I love, and he understood perfectly what gives Memphis music that special power. Being dead left him unavailable for "Stranger Me," so Amy found Craig Silvey. I'm sure he's a great producer (Arcade Fire did win a Grammy with his help), but I don't think he gets that Memphis music needs to be a little raw. That element of roughness evokes a visceral, emotional response and makes the music feel more sincere.

For a broad sample of her music, including several tracks from the new album, watch this--

STOP HAVING BABIES

Seriously. It's freaking me out. Use condoms, people.

Breaking Up With Your Favorite Band

As usual, this post was inspired by an NPR podcast. I apologize for being a pretentious white person, but I can't help it. The hosts of "All Songs Considered" were discussing the topic of breaking up with your favorite band, and it made me realize that I've grown apart from some of my favorite music. Remember all the way back to late January, when I was mooning over Jason Mraz? Apparently I'm kind of fickle, because after seeing him perform live in Memphis some of the magic seems to be gone. I think it's safe to say the affair is over. Looking back he seems a little sleazy. Now hearing his music feels awkward...kind of like running into an ex. (That's never actually happened, but I did spot an ex's new girlfriend at a senior week event. I stared at her like a creeper because I couldn't decide if it was her. No way she didn't notice. Kind of uncomfortable.)

Another band I'm almost over, but will stay with just because a boring relationship is better than no relationship at all: Cake. They didn't excite me at Music Fest and their new album, while not bad, didn't really do much for me.

I guess not all relationships are destined to last. Anyone want to share bands they've "broken up" with? If only so I know there are people out there reading?

A new phenomenon and a life lesson from an unlikely source

I made the questionable decision to see "Something Borrowed" last night (I blame peer pressure) and finally found words to describe a trait that makes some people innately unlikeable: douche face. Colin Egglesfield, the male lead in "Something Borrowed," is afflicted with a serious case of douche face. He just has this face that makes him look like a smarmy douchebag. In the movie, [SPOILER ALERT] he and Ginnifer Goodwin end up together. As soon as the credits started to roll, I turned to my friend and said, "Is it just me, or do you still hate him?" And she agreed, so this isn't just me arbitrarily disliking someone. While the script and acting were mediocre, I'm pretty sure the main reason I was so displeased by the ending of this movie was the guy's face.

However, I did take one useful thing away from it. Throughout the movie, we see instances of Goodwin's character letting Kate Hudson win (Hudson's character is engaged to a guy Goodwin fell head over heels for in law school...then introduced to Hudson), and just never going after anything she wants. This got me thinking (never a good thing, I know). Every time I don't get something I really want, I eventually look back and realize it's probably because I wasn't insistent enough. Sometimes I never even made it apparent that I wanted something, so of course it never happened.

The most painful example of this: I always wanted an Easy Bake Oven. As a five-to-sixteen-year-old, I would see the commercials and long to be able to make very small brownies and cookies with my own 100 watt light bulb. Who wouldn't want that? But for some reason it never occurred to me to mention this desire to my parents, and I was twenty before I finally got an Easy Bake Oven of my very own (seriously. My roommates got me one for Christmas junior year) and could make all the tiny, delicious treats my heart desired. I mentioned this to my parents and apparently they would have been happy to get me one at a much earlier age had they known I was interested. But considering my history of catching things on fire that probably would have been a terrible decision. Lesson: I need to go after the things I want. Or at least tell someone I want them. So, Thing(s) I Want: get ready to be aggressively pursued.

P.S. Second lesson from this movie: never introduce the guy you're crazy about to your hot blonde best friend. In fact, never introduce your hot blonde best friend to anyone.

Music Fest, Day 3

On the last day of Music Fest, the weather got sketchy. But Eddie and I braved the tornadoes, the rain, and the ghetto in the pursuit of great music.

Our first act of the evening was Gregg Allman. Not really my thing, but good. Ed (apparently that's what people call him now...) could probably tell you more.

The highlight of Sunday night--of the whole weekend, really--was Bettye Lavette. She performed in the Blues Tent, which is usually a pretty low-key venue. Most people sit for the performances and don't make a lot of noise. But as soon as Bettye got started, twenty or thirty people (including me) swarmed into the space right in front of the stage. She has an incredibly powerful voice and a magnetism that makes her audience desperate to get closer. Her cover of "Joy" is at least as good as Lucinda Williams' original and her delight at inspiring audiences is obvious from the way she beams every second she's on stage. It takes a lot of something--usually alcohol--to make me want to dance in public, but 2 beers and about half a song did it for me that night. The line from her set that stuck with me: "I've got my feet on the ground...I've got my own hell to raise." Also, how much do I want all of these t-shirts?

The final act we saw at Music Fest was the last 20 minutes of Wilco's performance. I've never been a big Wilco fan (I know, I should be shunned), but what I saw of this set was fun. I especially liked that they ended the performance with a cover of Big Star's "In the Street" (the song Cheap Trick butchered for the intro to "That 70s Show"). They even got Jody Stephens, the drummer and last living member of Big Star, to play it with them. I thought that was an appropriate acknowledgment of the hallowed musical ground that is Memphis and a poignant way to end my first Music Fest in four years.

No idea when I'll have the time/resources to get to Memphis for another Music Fest, but I hope it won't be too long.

Music Fest: Days 1 and 2

Forgive me, reader(s?), for I have been lazy. It's been about a month since my last post. I'll do some Hail Marys and try to be better.

I got back to Boston last night after attending the Beale Street Music Festival. I started writing this post during the plane ride home and realized I had a lot to say, so this is going to be a two-parter.

Day 1:

--Cake: I've seen them twice, so it's hard to get too excited about Cake anymore, but they are always worth seeing. While some find John McCrea's tendency to insult the audience offensive, I choose to believe I'm in on the joke and think he's likable and funny. But then I've always had questionable taste in men. My friends pointed out a guy in a bar once, saying "Look, he's Asian AND old, just your type!" Anyway, I'd see them again, but only in a situation like Music Fest. They're fun, but not worth the $50-60 it costs to see one of their regular shows. Also, they seem to be getting tired of touring and it's starting to show. They finished their set with "The Distance," and you could tell they were so sick of playing that song, but felt obligated because it was a festival crowd. While music festivals are great places to see a wide array of performances, most people are only marginally invested in seeing any particular act and aren't devoted enough fans to want to hear too many lesser known tracks. To be fair, though, Cake has been playing that song since 1996, so I can understand if they've gotten bored with it.

--Jason Mraz: Kind of a let down, to be honest. I was really looking forward to his performance, but I walked away feeling underwhelmed. I still love listening to his music, but will probably avoid going to another live show. He lost probably a third of the audience after he only got through about three songs in the first twenty-five minutes. While it didn't bother me, the tendency to let the band take off on three or four minute solos wasn't holding most of the
audience's attention. The musicians were all very talented, but that's apparently not what appeals to sixteen year old girls. Another downside to watching a musician with a fan base consisting primarily of teenage girls: they drag their boyfriends along and seem to think it's appropriate to dryhump each other in public. It's not. Just putting that out there. Maybe I'm just old and crotchety, but I found that kind of unpleasant and more than a little trashy.

But back to his performance! Despite most likely being stoned, he did manage to get through the songs everyone was there to hear--"Lucky," "I'm Yours," etc.

Day 2:

Overall, Saturday was much more fun than Friday. My companion for the weekend (speaking of old and crotchety...kidding! Best crazy uncle ever) wasn't feeling quite as old as he had felt Friday night and the music was infinitely better.

--Amy Lavere: I've seen her live several times and she seems to get better with every show. I've seen videos from some of her earliest tours, and I have to admit they were a little weak. But every live show I've been to has impressed me and last weekend's was no exception. As soon as she had finished her sound check ("Mr. Spaceman"--always great), she asked the audience, "Anyone have an ass-pocket of whiskey they want to share? C'mon, this is Memphis, someone's gotta be able to help me out." And of course, because it was Memphis (<3), some guy pulled out a flask-shaped bottle of Wild Turkey and tossed it up to her. She took a swig, tossed the bottle back, and started the show. You're not supposed to bring alcohol into Music Fest, so maybe five minutes later security approached the guy and gave him a hard time about the liquor. They tried to confiscate it, but he showed them an empty bottle (which he must have had in addition to the full bottle he shared with Amy, because there's no way he downed most of a bottle in under five minutes), and they left him alone. Well played. But c'mon, security guys--to use a cliche, that was SO not rock'n'roll.

Anyway, the set was fantastic. Since the end of her last relationship, Amy's gotten a new band (that's why you never date your drummer--or any drummer, for that matter. One of the sagest pieces of advice Mrs. Millen ever gave me) and recorded a new album. "Stranger Me" is coming out July 19th, and I can't wait. There's going to be an album release party at the Levitt Shell on July 16th, and anyone who lives in Memphis should go and tell me about it. I'm incredibly jealous. She played several tracks from the new album and they sound great. A lot of them center around her recent breakup, and she hasn't lost that slightly homicidal bent she displayed in her first few albums. Of the songs she played, my favorite tracks off the new album are "Damn Love Song" and the title track, "Stranger Me." She also played a song called "Lucky Boy," written for her by Jimbo Mathus. It's not as good as her original work, but decent. Expect a full review of "Stranger Me" this summer.

I was impressed that she didn't feel the need to perform "Killing Him," her only song that's gotten any radio play, and a few other staples from her earlier albums. She had a solid set without it, and I appreciated getting to hear more of her new material.

--Lucinda Williams: From a distance, she looks a little like Bob Dylan. I'm just sayin'. But she's also one of the best performers I've ever seen, so we can forgive her for that. She played several songs from her new album, "Blessed," as well as some of my favorites from her older albums. There's no such thing as a set that pleases absolutely everyone, and she certainly left out a few songs I would have liked to hear, but she was engaging and talented enough that I wasn't disappointed. And she really doesn't look bad for 58.


I'll save Day 3 for tomorrow night.