Queens of the Stone Age - “3’s & 7’s”
Official Website: www.qotsa.com
Myspace: www.myspace.com/queensofthestoneage
Josh Homme started QOTSA back in 1997 with one idea in mind, to make guitar rock that pounded the heck out of the listener. Now, I’m not about to compare them to Led Zeppelin, but if there is anything good coming out of the mainstream music scene, these guys sure are on the list.
This track, “3’s and 7’s”, has definitely perked my interest in their up and coming release, Era Vulgaris, which will be release June 12th on Interscope Records.
The opening chord progression has a punk anthem sound to it which only lasts for a second as the main guitar riff enters in along with the vocals. It’s no question this band is driven by the overdrive guitar riff. No offense to the vocals but they just don’t stand out to me. I also maybe bia as I’ve been obsessed with the guitar ever since I heard Eddie Van Halen on MTV rip through one of his signature two-handed finger tap guitar solos (watch YouTube video of Eddie). The great thing about this song is that it’s a perfectly structured tune. They place the bridge in the perfect spot so as to keep the listener on their toes. As the bridge comes to an end, they build some nice tension with a single bass line that leads in to the guitar solo.
Download: “3’s and 7’s”
Andrew Bird - eMusic Exclusive
Andrew Bird released track, “Self-Torture” - (Not found on Armchare Apocrypha )
“I knew this one girl, drowned in her on curls, candy color swirls that never seemed to end”
“I could not comprehend of what she said to me…”
“Tales of rituals, Self-torture, she is making you…”
The song, to me, seems to be about a boy remebering a girl, with curls, that he loved and wanted to be with. He envisioned that the universe would bring them together in classic serendipitous fashion. But, as Bird notes at the end of the chorus, “a scoreless victory for ser-ren-dip-ity”, the boy is left with his fate in his own hands. We don’t know how this story ends, does he get the girl or does he move on to find another girl to dream about, but as with most Bird songs, the listener is left to his or her own imagination.
The track is short, clocking in at 3:38. While short, it is a nice addition to any Andrew Bird fan’s collection. How can you get this track you ask? Well, you could go over to the Hype Machine and download it from one of the other hundred or so blogs that have posted the track for free, or, you can head over to eMusic, join for free for a month, get 25 FREE downloads and use one of your downloads to get the song. If you don’t like the whole “pay for your music online” concept, you can quit the subscription before the end of the month.
Links of Interest
I like Sweden, they’ve got a big natural crater amphitheatre
They also have a ton of pop bands that are aiming their mics at the shores of the U S of A. The most recent Swedish implosion coming from Peter Bjorn and John. But there is another group, or rather, artist, that I’ve been listeing to. The band is called Loney, Dear and I give you a short song review from their album, Loney, Noir.
Loney, Dear - “I Am John”
It amazes me to listen to music produced by one man when it sounds so much bigger. It’s not just a testament to the artist but to the evolution of music production and tools that we now have at our disposal. But lets be frank, without the artist the tools are just objects. Emil Svanangen has been praised by his home country of Sweden as “one of Swednes, if not the world’s, absolute best bands right now” (Dagens Nyheter, Swedens biggest daily newspaper). That might be a bit of an overstatement but there’s no question Emil has exceptional skills when it comes to writing a pure song. With “I Am John” the essense of purity is abound. He has chimes, a basoon, stomping, falseto pitches and it all comes together with one transition to the next. The song just builds and creates an epic sensation in your bones, the kind that shoots your hairs up from the roots. And yet, it is only one man at the knobs. Quite impressive. He is joined by friends during his live act to help keep the sound of the record, Loney, Noir, in tacked.
Buy the Album From Sub Pop (US Label)
Pre-order if you live in the U.K.
Loney, Dear is currently on tour, opening for U.S. Label mates, The Shins. Visit his website and myspace page to learn more about the tour and the music.
Jake Brennan and The…wait, its just Jake
I love it when Ear Farm throws up his Don’t You (Forget About Me) posts. It’s a great way to recap the bands / artists that you’ve enjoyed over the past few months on your blog. I wish I had the time to do such a post.
I digress and I’d like to share with you an artist that I came upon. Not only does Jake Brennan have that ruff and scruff folky sound that I’ve been diggin recently with albums like Springsteens Nebraska and the constant rambling of Johnny Cash (ok, smooth deep folk voice here but still on the same track), but he is based in Boston. And I love it when I find talent in this city, because it’s actually not that easy to come by.
Interestingly enough, I saw Jake and his band, The Confidence Men, play when My Morning Jacket and the Boston Pops had their PopRocks gig a ways back. They were one of the opening bands that played out in the hallways of Symphony Hall. I remember saying that this surf rock / hardcore folk - maybe not exactly that - was really kickin and that I needed to check them out. Of course, I forgot. But it all comes back around in time.
However, things are a bit different then when I saw Jake and his band play. Now it’s just Jake and his guitar. I think that’s what I was hearing back at the Symphony Hall. I checked out some of their songs from their album, Love & Bombs, and thought it was too polished for this guy I’m now listening to on myspace.
Apparently the band just got tired of playing their music, which is not uncommon. In fact, this is more common then you think. There are probably bands playing together right now that whether or not they’ll admit it, probably hate what they are playing (ahm, come on Mick and Co., it’s about time you called it quits).
Listening to “Do You Remember What Joe Strummer Said” I’m automatically thrown against the wall. I love the agressiveness in the song. I don’t know what it is but there is a fine line that is drawn between the punk sound that I like and a punk sound that I hate. Jake has the side that I like mixed in with some rockabilly and what he calls, “hardcore folk” (which I like). I’ve also been diggin the Tom Wait’s album, Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards, and Jake’s voice, while not as raspy, conjures up some of his bellows.
I’m looking forward to his forthcoming album that is said to be quite raw and stripped down and I’m assuming similar to the “Joe Strummer” track. Keep an eye on Jake and if you’re a Boston local, make sure to check out his Myspace page and see where he’ll be playing this weekend - Yes, I believe Jake has quite the sense of humor with his concert locations.
Links of Interest:
Management: Fenway Recordings
Download: “Do You Remember What Joe Strummer Said”
