01 Alva Leigh – Ordinary Day ~ tincanman
A bright new star from Mississippi, Alva wrote this for her debut album after reading Fair and Tender Ladies, a Lee Smith novel structured as a biography told through a series of letters written by protagonist Ivy Rowe over the course of her life from shortly before World War I until the Vietnam era. http://alvaleigh.com/about/
02 Silvana Kane – Cardo o Ceniza ~ nilpferd
A sensual cover version of a Chabuca Granda love song. Introverted, hypnotic and mournful, but the torch song receives a glorious, Yo-La-Tengoesque lift during the light-filled third verse.
03 Al Wilson – The Snake ~ wilemena
Everything about this classic Northern soul anthem is just fabulous.
04 Siouxsie And The Banshees – The Killing Jar ~ bishbosh
I remember seeing the video for this, the follow-up single to “Peek-A-Boo”, on The Chart Show and loving it. I saved up my pocket money, bought the Peepshow album (on cassette, natch)… and was bitterly disappointed by the rather underpowered version thereon. Here is the more muscular-sounding (far superior) single version.
05 The Death Set – Negative Thinking ~ Pairubu
Currently doing the rounds on an advert this raucous little ditty come courtesy of Australio-American noisemeisters. Sadly Guitarist Beau Velasco shuffled off this mortal coil in 2009 but the band continue in revamped form.
06 Slobberbone – Placemat Blues ~ Darcey’sDad
From the album ‘Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today’. A song I can’t call an afasarae, because I never actually get to nominate it: whatever the topic it always seems too much of a shoehorn. But what energy! And what an ACE tight horn section, no?
I’ve got a photo of Darcey, DsSis & their mate tessimmel all together with faces painted just like that!
1. Pleasant enough, a bit “wallpaper”
2. Quite like this but goes on a bit too long.
3. Can’t fault it.
4. I’m glad Siouxsie and the Banshees exist but please don’t make me listen to them again.
5. Brilliant, what excellent taste the picker must have.
6. Good start, makes me want to go “Wooo”. Not going to win any awards for originality but that’s a good thing sometimes.
Stan likes to lick wallpaper. He gets really into it too! Funny coz my old Rottie used to do it an’ all – think they like the taste of the paste coz he ate a full bucket of the stuff when we were decorating once.
Alva Leigh: Reminds me a little bit of Jill Sobule. Vocally, that is. Very pleasant, as ‘ubu says. I would like it to be a little less laidback. The opening line sounds like it’s going to be confessional – and therefore appeals to an emotional voyeur like myself – but it doesn’t quite get there.
Silvana Kane: Hypnotic is about right. Love the feel of this – and the sound of the waves in the background. Gorgeous.
Al Wilson: My karaoke staple. I do it rather well, actually (if the right level of pissed). It’s a good ‘actor’s song’. Tells a story an’ that.
The Banshees: Mine. Nuff said.
The Death Set: Yeah, I can see why this would catch pairubu’s ear. I’d like the vocals to be a little higher in the mix but that grungeyness is probably a big part of the appeal. Sounds a bit like two or three different songs but good fun.
Slobberbone: DsD’s choices do often seem to start out very ear-catchingly. A good sample or sound effect or what-have-you. Quite like this chap’s voice actually. And yes, fab horns. Like this a lot. Good ending too.
Ha! What I would give to see your karaoke turn! Do you do the Northern soul shuffle and slide across the floor too, or is it likely to be more like this after a few jars?
The last time I attempted such a move, I ripped the tendons in both sides of my left ankle (and that was back in my mid-20s), so I’m a little wary of attempts at over-athletic Northern Soul dancing, especially on talced-up floors!
Ooo! Painful. I once danced to this with a broken wrist and whacked some fella in the face with me pot arm. He was fine about it tho, as he was already plastered! Boom! Boom!
Arf!
Alva Leigh and Silvana Kane both very pleasant. Prefer Alva’s voice, but SK’s arrangement, particularly that delicate trumpet.
Al Wilson is yet another perfect example of why I should like Northern Soul, but yet again despite appreciating and even liking it, I somehow feel no urge to replay it. “It’s not you; it’s me …”
Siouxsie & The Banshees – one of DsMam’s three fave bands back in the day, so I’d better not say anything less than complimentary . . .
The Death Set – Agreeably noisy. Which ad, pairubu? No surprise I don’t know; I hardly watch any commercial channel telly.
@ bish re Slobberbone: Yeah, vocalist Brent Best has what steenbeck would approvingly call a “full-on ugly, twangy” voice, doesn’t he?
Ad is for Google Chromebook.
Pairubu. My son’s just said: ‘I can’t stand that song on that Google Chrome advert. It’s on EVERY SINGLE You Tube video I go on’. Ha ha. How a worm can turn eh?!
Alva Leigh: hmm, I thought I was going to love this when it started, liked her voice, but then it seemed to go on and on and got kind of monotonous. And when the drums came in…that didn’t improve it.
Silvana Kane: very pleasant; agree with DsD about the trumpet.
Al Wilson: yes, danceable. And I too would like to hear your version, bishbosh.
Siouxsie and the Banshees: I like Siouxsie and the Banshees and I like this too.
The Death Set: not my thing, sorry – all beat, no music
Slobberbone: why not suggest RRSA placemats, then, DsD? Yep, got my head nodding there. Raucous (in a good way) and true – my favourite this week.
Thanks, wilemena – sorry I didn’t get back last week. What was I doing? No idea
Alva Leigh – Not my type of thing (whatever that is). OK in its way but didn’t really grip me.
Silvana Kane – Bit too breathy a vocal for me. Liked the music though. Very haunting.
Al Wilson – Never heard this before. Like the vocal and the music. What a horrid story. What a horrid snake.
Siouxsie and the Banshees – My favourite line-up is still the one that recorded the first album but this is a good one..
The Death Set – Very rousing. Don’t know the band or the ad. I’ll be listening to this again.
Slobberbone – I must be in the mood for the noisier music this week. Maybe on another occasion I’d appreciate the first two choices more. As it is I’m enjoying this immensely. A bit like the stuff The Motors used to do when Bram Tchaikovsky was still in the band. Gritttier vocal though.
The first two didn’t quite grab me. Apparently Northern Soul isn’t really my thing either, sorry.
I bought Peek-a-boo on record (still have it, and the T shirt from that tour when I saw them live), so I have to admit to loving The Killing Jar big time, brings back some great memories every time I listen to it
Death Set is quite lively, but I liked it best when it finished. Slobberbone has a nicely grizzled vocalist, could imagine I might listen to it again. Reminds me of the Kings of Leon, is that bad?
Where did that guy go who always nommed Al Wilson songs on RR? He was a friend of Mitch’s. Danny something? Anyway, quality tune.
The Alva Leigh is from her debut of a few of years ago. I think the comments above are fair, but that she’ll get her teeth into the singing of her songs as she gains more confidence. Ordinary Day poses questions that she answers throughout the album without getting too navel gazing. Not bad for a 22 year old. She’s moved to London, so it will be interesting what that does for/to her Mississippi roots.
Enjoyed the Silvana Kane, and the vocals on Placemat Blues won my respect over a few listens (even though the band, in general, is pretty cookie cutter).
Highlight of the week, to my great surprise, was Siouxie. It wasn’t a band that made much impression on me at the time, but this is done about perfectly.
Noisemeistering not my thing.
note re headline this week: ’tis January, not February.
Rolling Danny?
dat da fella
Congratulations! You win the prize for the ‘Spot The (ahem) Deliberate Mistake Of The Week’!
Only Al Wilson grabbed my attention. The rest generally passed me by, I’m afraid.
Ummm … what Tempus said, but thank you everyone.
Alva Leigh and Silvana Kane were both very pleasant but didn’t stick in my head. Al Wilson, on the other hand, was very earwormy. It made me think of Tom Jones, which is no doubt sacrelige.
Bish will be unsurprised to learn that I have that Siouxsie and the Banshees album (’twas the first of theirs that I got. On a cassette. My least favourite format). I like it, naturally, and the single version is better.
I was expecting The Death Set to be all gothy but it wasn’t. Didn’t do much for me, I’m afraid.
I did like Slobberbone, though. Very DsD.