Since singlehandedly reinvigorating
indie pop with the release of the single “Forever” over a year ago, Haim has
kept fans waiting. The band of sisters
chose to release a long string of singles before announcing a debut album,
which will finally drop on September 30 (but I was lucky enough to find it online after it leaked--but of course, I am still buying the album because I care too much about music to do otherwise).
From the first pulse to the final fade out, Days Are Gone is a tightly woven masterpiece that delivers on every
promise and may even a have the power to act as a unifying force within the
tangled mess that is contemporary music.
image: weworemasks.com
Two of the band’s most popular
singles, “Falling” and “Forever,” draw listeners in as strong opening tracks. The gloriously lo-fi, vamping guitar leading
into the final chorus in “Forever” ensures that the song will live on as an all
time classic. The next track, “TheWire,” begins with a simple guitar riff that lends the song a breezy, Southern
California vibe anchored by tasteful synthesizer and Este Haim’s signature bass
line. The Haims trade off vocals during
verses before coming together for golden three part harmonies on each chorus.
“If I Could Change Your Mind”, the first brand new song on the record, masterfully utilizes
tempo changes to amp up the impact of each subsequent chorus. Danielle Haim’s soulful vocal and staccato
guitar border on stream-of-consciousness and preach from experience, admitting
“Every time I think about it/memories take me back to all the wildest
times.” The song speaks to the intense
pull of memories, no matter how much an individual may try to avoid them.
The
title track, placed just past midway through the album, stands out for a couple
reasons: it was co-written by R&B
extraordinaire Jessie Ware and indie songwriter Kid Harpoon, and it’s the only
song that does not feature Danielle Haim on lead vocals. Instead, Alana Haim takes over, adding edgier
vocals to a backbeat heavily influenced by electronic dance music.
It’s apparent that “Days are Gone”
serves as a jumping off point for the more sinister nature of the rest of the
record. The daring “My Song 5”continues
with EDM grooves, but “Go Slow” is the true masterpiece of the album. Ethereal backing vocals and a hypnotic drum
loop converge to create feelings of claustrophobia while an accusatory chorus
chants, “You took away all my young life/ and I hate what I’ve become.” Although all of the songs, and especially those
on the second half of the album, rely heavily on technological enhancements, raw
guitar solos and soulful vocals assure listeners that indeed, human beings are
the force behind such lush electronics.
In Israeli, “Haim” means “alive,” a
perfect adjective to describe Days Are
Gone. Many critics have attempted to
define Haim by comparing the group to a bizarre conglomerate of bands that have
passed their prime, including Fleetwood Mac, The Strokes, and TLC. But Haim, unafraid to dabble in the immediacy
of pop and undeterred by experimentation, has demanded to be defined on its own
terms.
So as the first of my highly anticipated albums of autumn, Days Are Gone has definitely exceeded expectations.
The Eagles are a truly great American band--the same cannot be said about Fleetwood Mac, The Rolling Stones, or other partially or completely English bands that gained a U.S. following in the '70s. The Eagles exemplified the "California sound," that melodically soft-rocking hybrid that crashed over the States like a Pacific tsunami, although none of the band's original members are native Californians. They learned the art of songwriting by eavesdropping on Jackson Browne's morning practice sessions through the floorboards of an Echo Park apartment. An alarming number of their early hits were written or co-written by outside songwriters . How were the Eagles, a band that should have been mediocre on paper, able gain authenticity on the way to selling the most copies of any single album released in the twentieth century?
Well, to begin, each member of the original lineup hailed from a different region of the country and brought different regional influences to the music.
The Michigander in the group, co-lead vocalist and lead guitarist Glenn Frey from Deeeetroit city, was hot stuff, and he knew it. He brought all the swagger the group would need to snatch a major label deal away from all of the other needy bands forming in L.A. in the early '70s. Musically, Frey was influenced by Motown and polished his guitar skills alongside Bob Seger (Frey contributed guitar and backing vocals to Seger's 1969 album Ramblin' Gamblin' Man). Frey gave the Eagles an edgier rock sound that set them apart from more mellow guy groups like America, Bread, and Crosby, Stills, and Nash. My favorite songs with Frey on lead vocals are "Already Gone" (written by Jack Tempchin and Robb Strandlund) and "Lyin' Eyes" (written by Frey and Henley).
Drummer (and Stevie Nicks hookup number one) Don Henley nearly shoved Frey out of the picture, thanks to his golden vocals, revered among the best in rock. A southerner at heart, Henley's upbringing in the small, agricultural town of Linden, Texas exposed him to the ragtime of Scott Joplin, Western swing, and classic country along with the popular music of The Beatles and Elvis. My top two songs with Henley on lead vocals are "Desperado" (written by Frey and Henley) and "Best of My Love" (written by Frey, Henley, and J.D. Souther). The brains of the group, Henley majored in English Literature at North Texas State University and adopted a quote from Emerson's Self-Reliance as his call to arms: "Beware what you set your heart upon. For it surely shall be yours."
Bernie Leadon, banjo enthusiast and former member of country rockers The Flying Burrito Brothers, was raised on Minnesota bluegrass. Leadon put the "country" in "Eagles" and contributed important harmony parts until leaving the band in 1975.
Randy Meisner, the high-harmony singing boy next door, was a founding member of Poco before joining the Eagles as a bassist. He was famously replaced by a dog on Poco's debut album cover, which can be observed in the linked video. Meisner co-wrote 9 Eagles songs including "Take it To the Limit," on which his unbelievable high note at the end (skip to 4:23) was the reason for his departure in 1977.
Together, the founding four met in Linda Ronstadt's backing band once they were all settled in L.A. Once they asked her opinion, Ronstadt encouraged them to form their own group. The Eagles were established in 1971. There were arguments and lineup changes along the way, but whenever the Eagles toured, they were a force of nature.
When the sessions for the 1974 Western-themed concept album On the Border required a slide guitarist, Bernie Leadon's friend Don "Fingers" Felder joined the group as a second lead guitarist. Felder traded guitar licks with Frey on "Already Gone".
Bernie Leadon left the band in late 1975 and was last recorded on 1975's One of These Nights. Citing differences in musical taste (Leadon much preferred country to the harder rock direction the Eagles were headed in) as well as a personal desire to find time to exercise and get healthy, Leadon still managed to go out with a bang after breaking a beer bottle over Glenn Frey's head following an argument on the night of his departure.
The same day of the announcement that Leadon had left the band, the band gained a firecracker in lead guitarist Joe Walsh (Stevie Nicks hookup number 2).
Walsh had already attained some mainstream success as lead guitarist and vocalist for The James Gang as well as with 1973 solo jam "Rocky Mountain Way". Walsh took Frey's edginess and kicked it up about fifty notches with an aggressive guitar tone and imaginative riffs and solos. Walsh influenced the band immediately, earning them a hit with the fast-paced "Life in the Fast Lane" from the 1976 album Hotel California. Constantly battling drug and alcohol abuse, it was a miracle Walsh could hold up for an entire show on some nights. Healthy competition between Walsh and Felder developed on tour as they took part in live guitar duels on the song "Hotel California.".
During the Hotel California tour, Randy Meisner was having health issues related to exhaustion, which he felt affected his ability to hit that high B at the end of "Take it to the Limit." The song was an undeniable crowd pleaser, and Frey attempted to pressure Meisner into performing it one last time for an encore (to literally "take it to the limit one more time," I guess you could say...), which pushed Meisner to his breaking point as far as dealing with The Eagles was concerned.
It would seem like finding another high harmony singer who played bass would prove difficult, but Poco was able to provide another. Enter Mr. Timothy B. Schmit, Meisner's successor in Poco (he wrote a hit for that group with "Keep on Tryin'").
Harmony extraordinaire Schmit has recorded with CSN, Firefall, Andrew Gold, and Steely Dan. So he was definitely up for the challenge when he was called upon by The Eagles in 1977. As another member who made an immediate impact on The Eagles, Schmit wrote and sang lead vocals on "I Can't Tell You Why" a song from 1979's The Long Run. The song reached number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the Eagles entered the era of glossy rock. Timmy B. is a personal favorite. I'm not exactly sure why--maybe because his hair looks like mine, or because he's just kind of adorable. Plus, he must be an eternal optimist, because after surgery for throat and neck cancer in late 2012, he already has his singing voice back.
The Eagles broke up for the first time in 1980, which was inevitable given the amount of time these people spent together on a daily basis. The event occurred on a fateful night in Long Beach. The band was performing at a benefit for senator Alan Cranston, but Don Felder hated performing for free. Felder and Frey's relationship had been on the rocks since recording The Long Run, but when Cranston individually thanked each member of the band prior to the concert, Felder replied with a "you're welcome...I guess," which infuriated Glenn Frey. During the performance, Felder and Frey were giving each other death threats, which were captured on tape. Felder was then fired from the band.
"Somebody's gonna hurt someone/before the night is through/somebody's gonna come undone/there's nothing we can do." -Heartache Tonight
All of The Eagles except for Leadon and Meisner reunited in 1994 and have released two more albums of new material and toured on and off since then. Leadon made guest appearances on the most recent tour, but has not rejoined the band full time. After everything, there is still one thing no one can take away from this band:
Their Greatest Hits(1971-1975), an ambitious release for a band with only four albums worth of material at the time,will always be the best selling individual album of the Twentieth Century. And Timothy B. Schmit's hair will remain a constant.
As an artist who didn't even pick up a guitar until age 16, Patty Griffin has proven herself as a solid songwriter since debuting with 1996's Living with Ghosts. Each subsequent release has steadily climbed the U.S. sales charts, and American Kid peaked at #36 (fun fact: she's currently dating former Zeppelin Robert Plant, her collaborator on the album). Her journey to songwriting prominence began after a 1992 divorce, when Griffin became a regular performer on the Boston coffeehouse scene before signing with A&M. At 49 years of age, Griffin's career arc is an enigma between the singer-songwriter generation of the '70s and the current indie folk genre.
Yes, Patty Griffin just released American Kid on May 7. However, Silver Bell contains songs that were recorded for a 2000 release. The songs were shelved following a change in ownership at A&M records and Griffin's subsequent departure from the label. Two of the songs were so strong that they drew attention from the Dixie Chicks, who definitely know how to choose the right cover songs and turn them into hits. "Top of the World", as recorded by the Chicks, served as the namesake for the country group's 2003 tour and live album. The other song, "Truth #2", was released on the Chicks' multiplatinum 2002 album Home.
Griffin's own recordings are more sparse than the Dixie Chicks versions, so I'm looking forward to the official release of an album already known to contain two definitive songwriting gems. Although already bootlegged online, Griffin has rerecorded several tracks and remixed the album. Stripped down albums require production expertise to avoid sounding like glorified elevator music. Griffin's music blends country, Americana, and rock, a recipe that is easily ruined in the studio. Because veteran Glyn Johns, veteran producer of The Eagles and The Who, produced the album, my standards are pretty high. Silver Bell has the potential to be Griffin's highest charting album yet.
COMING SOON: The stories behind your favorite bands (and some of those weird, overlooked '70s groups too). Up next: Eagles lore.
I am not the most enthusiastic or the most knowledgeable fan of Pearl Jam, a band that basically aspired to be Nirvana. And maybe they could have been if they actually invested in a music video or two and didn't blow off interviews and press appearances. Pearl Jam is certainly difficult to categorize. Some songs are mellow, '70s style rockers, an annoying amount feature Eddie Vedder scream-singing, and most are grungy, forgettable '90s rejects. Plus, I'll never forgive Vedder for wasting an entire solo album on ukelele songs (I mean, the songs were decent, but the ukelele simply cannot be taken seriously). Obviously, I prefer the subdued vocals of "Better Man" and anything from the stunning and sparse Into the Wild soundtrack to the growl of "Why Go", but it's pretty amazing that one band (and one singer) can pull off songs on both sides of the spectrum.
Personal prejudices aside, I respect Vedder's extreme versatility as a vocalist and a lyricist. I understand that a person cannot choose his or her natural vocal range, but if I were a man, I'd certainly want Vedder's smooth baritone so I could cut through all of the whiny Vampire Weekend and Mumford & Sons crap clogging radio air time. Because Vedder and Co. is capable of writing songs that fall under so many different sub genres of rock, I am curious to see which direction the band has chosen to lean towards on Lightning Bolt.
image: stereogum.com
The first single, "Mind Your Manners" is less than promising and alarmingly Green Day-esque, although it does have some redeeming moments, including the introductory riff and the chorus at 1:10. But after reading on Spin that at least one of Vedder's unreleased solo songs is on the album, I'mhopeful that with Lightning Bolt a compromise will be momentarily reached among the band's many facets.
Diane Birch released her debut album three years ago. I stumbled upon "Fools" and "Rewind", songs from that album, on Pandora and I couldn't believe I hadn't heard them before. The album, Bible Belt, is every bit as nostalgic and thematic as the title implies. According to history, the bible belt refers to a conservative, Protestant region of the Southeastern United States. In Diane Birch's reality, the title refers to the social constraints and musical influences of a globe trotting life as the daughter of missionaries.
After learning piano as an early age with the Suzuki method of playing by ear, Birch learned from church music and gospel classics, lending a neo soul vibe and strong, slingshot vocals to her debut album. With an exquisitely controlled yet powerful voice reminiscent of Laura Nyro and songwriting to rival Carole King, the album sounds familiar yet just innovative enough that I was left wondering how her sound would evolve on the next album.
True artists always seem to find a way to evolve between albums. The evolution must be subtle enough to represent genuine growth, yet there should be a distinct change in the atmosphere. The season of the music must change, if that makes any sense. For example, Van Morrison's Avalon Sunset is an autumn album. I can hear the leaves and see oranges and reds before my eyes. Springsteen's Born to Run is a summer album because it deals with hope and driving with the windows down on long stretches of road.
dianebirch.com
Diane Birch's second full length albumhas definitely seen an atmospheric shift. Everything I've heard from the album so far has exceeded my expectations. The new album is slightly more pop oriented with more studio shenanigans, but that's okay because the synthesizers and digital implements all complement the core melody, the holy grail of song. Five or six songs have already appeared online, but my favorites so far are "Speak a Little Louder" and "Pretty in Pain". The songs are riskier, more aggressive, and shrouded in a thin veil of darkness, like the passing of time itself.
Okay. I am going to admit right now that expectations and past chart performances may overshadow the actual content of the album, but that's alright. I just really want to see whether Cher can continue her streak of number one hits in every decade since the '60s. Although this time, the pressure is off because a song from the film "Burlesque" rose to number one on the dance charts in 2011 and "Woman's World", the advance single from Closer to the Truth, already peaked at number one on the dance charts this year.
Besides being ageless, humorous, and surprisingly down to earth, Cher has given the world some seriously kickass music over the past six decades. Let's enjoy some primitive music videos and the excesses of the decades as we take a look at an impressive history of number one singles and the charts they peaked on:
From singing background vocals on Ronettes hits to pioneering the use of autotune with "Believe," Cher has repeatedly conquered the music world. After she got bored with that, she turned to acting in the late '80s and won an Academy Award as best actress for "Moonstruck." if a recipe for fame exists, I'm pretty sure Cher must have written it. Remember: before Lady Gaga, before Madonna, and before autotune was used as a crutch, there was Cher.
I discovered Haim, a band of three sisters from Los Angeles, through Rolling Stone, which has proven itself time after time as an extremely reliable source for judging the quality of new bands, at least according to my taste (couldn't resist the link...I can't help thinking in lyrics sometimes...). I have never heard anything remotely like the music this band makes. In a nutshell, they are not trying to imitate anyone, which is very refreshing. When I noticed that their single "Forever" was gaining attention on the indie pop scene, I decided to keep an eye out for their next single. I never trust a band with only one popular single for a few reasons. First, the single could represent the extent of their musical abilities. So many young indie bands rush to labels and secure deals before they are entirely aware of their artistic vision. Sadly, major labels attempt to pigeonhole bands into certain genres to ensure the music will have immediate listenership and radio airplay. Once an image is established, changing that image is assumed to be bad for sales (unless, of course, it's Cher...see number two on the list). In these cases, the songs will sound too similar and I'll lose interest in the band quickly.
Each of Haim's subsequent singles has retained the urgent vocals, heavy emphasis on rhythm, and intriguing yet catchy hooks. However, each release has a life of its own, making this band the ultimate pop/rock/rhythm and blues chameleon. From seriously tearing up Fleetwood Mac's "Oh Well" to the Beach Boys-esque "Honey and I" to the anthemic "Send Me Down", Haim represents a more mature version of everything I enjoy about the few indie bands I can actually stand listening to for more than half a song: raw guitar riffs, intelligent lyrics that aren't narcissistic, three part harmonies, and an incredible bass player. And this band has been winning over festival crowds for six years. Astoundingly, they are able to recreate the singles flawlessly on stage. I actually prefer their live tracks over the studio material because each musical element is discernible, and their producer has an annoying habit of compressing those elements into something that leans more towards pulsating dance pop than rock. Already having opened for Florence and the Machine, Ke$ha, and Mumford and Sons, all of which I consider inferior artists, Haim is poised to take the indie world by storm...and survive to tell the story decades from now.
And for more information about the band, here is an article I wrote for the college paper (August 22nd issue, page 3).
I am actually supposed to be posting every week day, and I need to play a little catch up, so I will post each of the next four albums as a separate entry. Later!
2) Cher, Closer to the Truth, Sept. 24
3) Diane Birch, Speak a Little Louder, Oct.15
4) Pearl Jam, Lightning Bolt, Oct. 15
5) Patty Griffin, Silver Bell, Nov. 8
Critically acclaimed songwriter Warren Zevon only had one hit of his own: 1978's "Werewolves of London", which he considered to be a practical joke on the record company. Although his albums have been produced by Jackson Browne, his songs have been recorded by Linda Ronstadt, and his music has been promoted by David Letterman, Zevon's writing is just off kilter enough to scare listeners away. His songs evoke the cinematic scope of old Western novels doused in a heady cocktail of psychoanalytic theory.
As I was driving home from South Haven last night following a long day of magazine distribution with my ipod on shuffle, "Mohammed's Radio" captured my attention. For Zevon, the song is relatively tame and uncharacteristically straightforward. The radio has a divine presence in the lives of listeners, who range from the working class to sheriffs and even "the village idiot." Just as people often turn to religion for comfort and security, turning on the radio can have an effect just as powerful as an organized mass or a solitary prayer. Interestingly, instead of using a Christian figure as a metaphor for radio, Zevon chose the Islamic prophet Mohammed.
Let's take a look at the people mentioned in the song. "Everybody" refers to the working class, who are "restless" while "trying to make ends meet." In the first verse, these people are frustrated with having to spend all of their waking hours working, or perhaps even with the failure of religion to bring them peace. They feel trapped, which angers them and stirs feelings of self pity, or "anger and resentment." Later in the song, Zevon reveals that their lives are unfulfilled because of the persistent struggles for livelihood and self realization. This phenomenon is described with typical Zevon callousness as a failure to pay for "gasoline and meat."
The next verse could easily be set in the local bar, where sheriffs wait in the parking lot and watch patrons enter and exit, breaking up any fights that may begin. The "village idiot" may be a troublemaker or one of the working class, from the sheriff's point of view, or he could represent an entirely different demographic, content in his obliviousness. Either way, "the sheriff's got his problems too," and all anyone in town can do to ease their pain is to listen to the radio...Mohammed's radio.
The narrator in the chorus is distracted from his problems by a voice on the radio. The fact that this voice is referred to only as "somebody" implies both separation and closeness. Somebody apart from the people in the song, but at the same time, somebody that may represent the fully realized versions of each person in the song. Why else would the voice captivate them so completely? The voice on the radio is motivating, enticing listeners to "stay up all night listening" as if worshiping the radio in the church of night where it is permissible to escape and to dream, a place where life makes sense.
But the listeners are warned to "be watchful for Mohammed's lamp," because dreaming too much will only make facing reality more difficult, and staying up all night listening is probably not advisable for people with jobs to keep. This idea, that music's powers are limited and possibly even detrimental to listeners, reminds me of an essay by Mark Edmundson entitled "Can Music Save Your Life?". In the essay, Edmundson credits Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" with making him "feel like life was larger than I thought and making me feel like I wanted to find out what I was missing." Well, what if the idea that you're missing something had never occurred to you before? On one hand, you'd be stunned and possibly intimidated. On the other, your potential as a human being just multiplied exponentially.
Alternately, Edmundson acknowledges that he used music to "tune out his moods," and asks a timeless question: "Do we sometimes go to music to hide from our fears that the world makes no sense at all?" The same question could be asked with "religion" in place of "music." At the end of a night listening to the radio, to put it frankly, nothing has been accomplished and no questions have been answered. The illusion of self-help, or even of a deeper connection with mankind, can be explained by what Edmundson recognizes as a fabrication of experience. Music can only be a savior if it moves us to action, and if we take care to avoid living vicariously through music while constantly facing dissatisfaction with our own respective realities.
"The best thing hearing music can do for you is make you want to make your own," wrote Edmundson, and he is correct. For me, music sparked an intense desire to create and a motivation to succeed and to never stop trying, a thirst that could not be quenched by listening to more music. I wanted to be that "soulful voice" not literally, but fundamentally, through writing. I still have the desire to inspire people in the way that I have been inspired so many times it seems impossible to repay the debt.
But maybe the song shouldn't be interpreted so seriously, seeing as the songwriter wrote it after he spotted a mentally handicapped man dressed as a Sheikh on Halloween, holding a radio. And maybe we shouldn't take ourselves so seriously. Anything in life has the power to inspire, as Zevon has proven, but only we have the power to create.
