Records!

So, Steve and I went on a trip to Red Eye Records today, because Steve got a voucher for his birthday and wanted to buy a CD or two. Well, it ended up considerably more than that… I was looking through the vinyl section, and spotted some totally awesome ones there – a few Belle and Sebastian records, Sufjan Stevens, Arcade Fire. Elliott Smith, Vampire Weekend. Well, what can I say? I couldn’t resist! I bought Tigermilk and Funeral, and Steve decided to join the bandwagon and got Seven Swans.

There was only one problem with this purchase – well, neither of us have a record player. We had a look around, but nobody in the city had any, and all the places in Newtown were closed for the day. But we had one last option… JB Hi-Fi at Bondi Junction. Headed out there, and what do you know? A really neat one for $200! So Steve got it – I don’t really have the money – and we got it home and set it up. Oh my, so good!!!

To celebrate, Lizzie came over with Monopoly (the Disney/Pixar version, sadly, but it was all she could manage to find in Kmart) and we had a Monopoly / Record Listening party. Once we beat Steve fair and square, Lizzie and I ended up calling it a draw because we were pretty even and otherwise it would’ve taken all night. Oh yeah, and we also went to Badde Manners dinner, which is awesome. And we had oh so much fun playing Monopoly and records. Maybe it will become some sort of regular happening? Lol.

Anyway, I really want to get me a record player some time soon, so I don’t have to use / borrow Steve’s. One day, hopefully. A gramophone / phonograph would be delectable, but I don’t think that’s going to happen any time soon. Oh, and Lizzie and I decided that for Steve’s 21st, we’re organising a 20s / Gatsby / Jazz / Swing / fun night, which will have lots of old 20s jazz records involved. Haha.

Broken Sound?

Shit, I think I’ve done something to my sound card or headphone jack in my laptop. Or it’s just broken. Well, not broken, as such, but not working as well as it should. The sound has gone a bit fuzzy, and it’s kinda annoying me. I’ve tried both my speakers and headphones, and I thought maybe it’s just Amarok, but I tried playing a CD and the same thing happened (if not worse). It’s possible that Ubuntu has done something, so I might have to boot up Windows (eww) at some point to make sure, but I doubt it’s that. Oh no!!

Maybe I’ll have to invest in a nice combination CD / record player . Haha, I wish. Also, it would have to support Last.fm scrobbling, which is probably a bit much to ask.

DVD Disappointment

I’m pretty disappointed at the moment. Last night I hired a few movies, and today I started to watch The Rage In Placid Lake, which I really wanted to see. However, about 17 minutes in, just as I was really enjoying it, it stopped playing due to being heavily scratched. I tried cleaning it, and playing it in every DVD playing application on my computer AND the Xbox, but to no avail. I’ll take it back to the video store to get them to put it through their special cleaning machine and/or see if they have another copy, but I’m not sure how successful that will be. Dammit, I really wanted to see it!

This is why the Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD format war looks like being the most pointless one yet – discs are crap, and won’t last long before being mostly taken over by digital things that can’t be scratched and stuff (this is not to say DVDs will disappear any time soon – look at how long VHS has stuck around – but there’ll be new stuff on the way. I hope).

Peter Bjorn and John – Writer’s Block

Since most of you probably know Young Folks, due to all the hype surrounding it not all that long back, I figured I’d try and give some lip service to the album from which it comes, which I am a pretty big fan of.

Reading on a lazy Sunday afternoon with Paris 2004 playing in the background has to be one of my favourite things ever. I don’t really know how to describe it, but it’s got that nice European summery feel about it.

And it’d be hard to pick a better song to walk to than Up Against The Wall, which has a wonderfully sublime beat. I tried to reproduce it on violin, but it’s just not the same!

Last of all, I guess I’ll mention Peter Morén’s accent. The way he says “You’re giving me the chills” (in The Chills), well… Gives me the chills! It’s more like schills that chills. Mmm…

I really like their album before Writer’s Block, too. It’s called Falling Out – overall it’s a lot rougher around the edges, but I think I like it for that. Especially if I’m falling out of love.

Anyway, you can download Writer’s Block here. Buy it if you like it!

Goodbyes & Stuff

So, a question to all you Sydneysiders out there. And people from anywhere else, too, for that matter. I’ve noticed a few times recently people giving a bit of a peck on the cheek as a way of saying goodbye, and experienced it first hand for the first time today (hence the reason I’m asking).

Now, I know, of course, that it’s nothing more than a way of saying goodbye, I was just wondering if it’s only done by a certain demographic or something. Just a matter of interest. I mean, I never experienced it back home except for between, like, old people! Old people referring to people my parents age. So not that old, but still. Not young, either.

Furthermore, I’m pretty sure I’ve only noticed it here with North Shore kids, so maybe it’s a tradition that only they’ve kept. I really don’t know! But yeah, any opinions would be welcome, I just noticed and am now intrigued!

On another note, I had a wonderful and productive day today (apparently they aren’t mutually exclusive!). I went to study in the library after Spanish, and came across Michelle (who happens to be in my Spanish class, actually), so we chatted, I got most of my essay plan done (due tomorrow), and then we went for a wander in Darling Harbour. ‘Twas nice (and the cause of the goodbye question).

Hasta mañana!

Maxïmo Park – Our Earthly Pleasures

Wow, yet another British indie rock-pop band! A bit of a cliché nowadays, no?

Actually, surprisingly not when it comes to Maxïmo Park. Despite the overwhelming presence of British bands in the current ‘indie rock-pop’ scene, they manage to be rather fresh, exciting, and pretty darned fun to listen to. Sometimes it comes off a little too ‘polished’, like the band doesn’t want to take any risks whatsoever, but that’s not a bad thing once in a while, and overall it’s a really nice listen. I mean, who wouldn’t want to listen to songs about girls who play guitar?*

It’s just a shame that their currently touring, but the only Sydney show they did was the Playground Weekender, out at Hawkesbury. No sideshow in Sydney! Totally cut.

Download Our Velocity and Books from Boxes (not my first choices, but there’s limited availability out there!).

*I would! Face it, they’re totally hot.

Bugga – Cool As Fuck EP

My boss actually found this band. Well, kind of. At work we have this thing that he wanted to call Bugga, so he was searching the name on Google. And he came across this, which he showed everyone because of the pretty hilarious CD cover. Anyway, I looked them up, and randomly decided to buy their sole release, Cool As Fuck EP. I’m pretty sure I’m the sole owner of this record outside the UK, as they didn’t offer international postage options, and when I emailed to enquire about it, they just said they’d ship it for free. Nice!

The first track, from which the EP takes its name, is just pretty generic angry British light garage punk. It’s the second track where my purchase started to seem worthwhile, with the pretty good acoustic Supermodel. It’s a bit strange sometimes, with lyrics such as “All I want is a supermodel / To take me home and fuck me / She can tie me up, covered in honey / Then I’ll let her lick it off me“, but it’s really pretty nice to listen to.

The third track, These Here Times, falls halfway back into the routine of Cool As Fuck, although not quite as angry, and as a result rather more listenable. I must admit, the singer’s voice has a rather annoying British accent, though (as opposed to an awesome one, like Stuart Murdoch).

The fourth and final track, Pasty Song, is, as suggested by the title, all about Cornish pasties. How he likes them, what can go wrong with them, stuff like that. You know, I never thought somebody could ever get so worked up about pasties, but apparently the songwriter for Bugga has a real soft spot for them, and is pretty picky!

I don’t think I would recommend anyone buy this, but I certainly don’t regret doing it myself. If anybody’s interested, they can listen to the whole EP bar one song (These Here Times), on the band’s MySpace.

IT Brochure, Market Presence

So, like, none of the people I know are looking at starting Uni next year, but if, for some reason, you get the opportunity, pick up a UTS:IT brochure! Why? Because I’m in it! Totally cool. I autographed it for somebody the other day, haha.

Furthermore, if you end up at one of the various Career Market event thingies (where all the Unis get together to give out course information and all that) around Sydney, check out the UTS:IT stand, as I might just be there.

Wilco @ Enmore Theatre, 18-03-2008 (Attempt #2)

Okay, so I’m redoing this review, because it was, well… Lacking? Heh. You can still view the old one here, though, if you really want.

The support, Bridezilla, were… Interesting, to say the least. In a very very good way, mind you. After their first song, I mentioned to Steve that The Droneswere supporting in Melbourne, and he said he wished they were supporting here in Sydney, too. I told him to give them a chance, they’d only played one song, and in the end he did actually really enjoy them. Personally, I couldn’t much take my eyes off the violinist. Maybe I’m biased because I was like “omg I wish I could do that on my violin”, but she really was amazing. The face-offs between the violinist and saxophonist were awesome, too.

I didn’t see as much of Wilco as I would’ve liked; I felt really sick after a couple of songs, so had to go and sit in the foyer for most of it, just coming out to see the songs I recognised. But from what I’ve heard from the others I went with, it was a pretty similar experience even from where they were – middle, a few metres from the stage!

I think if one thing came out of the old review, it was this: the reason we didn’t say much about Wilco was that, well, we didn’t actually have a lot to say about them. They were good, sure. Brilliant, talented live musicians. But they just weren’t captivating. I could relate it to some experiences I’ve had making a mix tape recently, even.

For it to be as good as you want it to be, the songs have to flow, to make sense with one another, and to engage the audience. One out-of-place song can ruin it (although not so much in the live show). Wilco seemed to do this all to often, I thought. They played some excellent, excellent songs (Heavy Metal Drummer, Walken, Via Chicago, etc), but they were intersperced with so many songs that went back to their, uh, ‘country bumpkin’ era, that we found it hard to get into the whole feel and energy of the show, which, with a live show, is half the kudos right there.

Maybe I should’ve made an effort to get hold of some of their older albums before watching (I have Summerteeth, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and Sky Blue Sky, and adore all of them), but I don’t know that I would’ve enjoyed them that much anyway. They just didn’t seem like my kind of music? Haha. Apologies to old-Wilco lovers.

Actually, talking about the albums I have reminded me of something – the songs they didn’t play. They missed I Am Trying To Break Your Heart, which was probably the one everyone was most upset about. Who can resist wanting to become and American aquarium drinker, just to relate to the song? Or maybe that’s just me. Another missing hit was Either Way, although it comes a distant second to IATTBYH, and I would’ve liked to see I’m Always In Love and Jesus, Etc, although I’m only 90% sure they didn’t play them (it’s possible I just didn’t hear).

So, I guess that’s about it from me this time. As I said before, you can get some other opinions (kind of) from the old post. Other than that… At least Nick and Steph will get to make up their own minds, when they see Wilco with The Drones in Melbourne next week!

Happy Easter, everyone!

Wilco @ Enmore Theatre, 18-03-2008

For a slightly more sensical review, click here (it’s still mine).

Alrighty then, I guess I should explain something first. It’s really quite lucky I have two people (Steve and Lizzie) enlisted to collaborate on this review, as I actually missed about half of Wilco, due to feeling unwell and having to go sit in the foyer. Shame, but these things happen. Anyway, should be an interesting review!

…

Okay, so we’ll start this in just a sec, I have to wait for Steve and Lizzie to stop arguing about how to make jelly properly (there’s some pretty strong opinions being expressed). And now they’re on to Garden State. Who knew there were so many arguments to have leading up to a Wilco review?

Lizzie: It’s funny, but I also dislike it.

James: Someone say something!

Steve: About Wilco? Well they were pretty cool, but they had a country hick opening.

[silence]

Lizzie: I kind of liked Bridezilla. ‘Cause Brown Paper Bag was pretty good. But Holiday Sidewinder likes to show people her underwear. Like a lot. Except she has the coolest name ever.

[arguing about what I should and shouldn't type, including whether I'm allowed to type things I think, but not actually say]

Steve: Yeah there was something about wearing a nightie on stage that just…

[arguing about whether or not it was actually a nightie]

[Lizzie bitching about the sticker on Holiday's leg]

Lizzie: I did not bitch, it was only a sticker!

James: Okay, can we get onto the actual review now?

Steve: Well, do you have anything to say?

James: I actually really liked Bridezilla. I guess especially because I saw their full set. The violinist was awesome!

Lizzie: I was pretty bummed [Wilco] didn’t play I Am Trying To Break Your Heart.

[Steve complains about banging wrist on bed post ages ago, it's still hurting. Lizzie suggests going to RPA, but Steve declines ("it'll get better, it wasn't that hard. Just in the dodgy spot")]

James: Far out.

Steve’s general opinion (after being pressed): I didn’t know many of the songs.

Lizzie: I just assumed I didn’t know them because I was too lazy to listen to the albums.

James: I totally agree, actually, I probably recognised less than half of what they played. They just did a 5-night residence in Chicago and played their entire discography, so I guess it was to be expected that they play a lot of their really old stuff.

[Steve and Lizzie argue about Steve feeling weird; apparently Lizzie is to blame. Now Lizzie feels weird too. She's blaming me]

James: This isn’t a review!

Steve: Well is there any main point we all want to make together?

Lizzie: Poor drummer! By the end of the third song, his head was dripping with sweat. Where do you go from there?

Steve: Yeah I was sort of buried in the heat so much that I couldn’t enjoy the concert as much as I would’ve liked.

Lizzie: I’m short. I couldn’t see.

James: Actually yeah, it was a really tall crowd. And fairly old, too. Completely different to, say, Arcade Fire. Oh, I also had some guy come up to me and ask me where I got my Sufjan t-shirt. Yay!

Steve: Did the concert really engage us that much, seeing as we can’t really talk about it that much?

Lizzie: I thought it was better live.

James: I guess I didn’t really get into the flow of it all that well, as I just saw songs here and there, but it didn’t seem to me like it was terribly engaging or… I dunno. What did you guys think?

Steve: Yeah, I wasn’t engaged. It just didn’t… Do it for me. Yeah.

James: And they didn’t play a number of good songs. As previously mention, I Am Trying To Break Your Heart, and Either Way was also missing. Heavy Metal Drummer and Walken were pretty awesome, though.

Lizzie: Well I think they were really good live, but just not exciting.

Steve: They played Reservations, too.

James: Yeah. I really love that song, but it didn’t really do much for me.

Steve: Yeah, it was a bit… Empty.

[argument about whether this was actually supposed to be a review or not - Lizzie apparently didn't realise]

Well, I’m not sure we’re going to get much more out of this, sorry :p. Steve is getting awfully scared of Lizzie – not sure why.

Lizzie: He’s not scared of me! He’s not! I was not going to hit him. I’m scared of him.

Steve: What?!

[argument ensues about how Steve scares Lizzie. Steve using my backpack as a shield, albeit unnecessarily, I think]

Okay, I think that’s enough for one night…

In summary? Wilco was good live, but not terribly ‘engaging’ (sorry about the overuse of that word). Good luck to Nick and Steph, who are seeing them soon! (Another joint review on the way?).

[Oh man, they're still arguing... And Steve is seeing thunder... Lol]