Joanna Newsom --- "Ys"

D

Diggedy Derek

Stray Dog
Animal Collective have a fair bit of techno influence too- effectively used, even if it's generally not overtly danceable.

As for Joanna Newsom- that album is a masterpiece, I reckon.
 
G

Gabba Flamenco Crossover

High Sierra Skullfuck
Well, it arrived this morning. I just played it, and my first impressions are tilted towards the negative. My two main objections have already been made by Penman & dubversion... the orchestration is overfussy, and for a narrative record it doesnt really seem to go anywhere - it establishes a mood & sticks with it til the end.

It reminds me of Laura Nyro's Eli & The Thirteen Confessions - my least favorite of the four albums Laura recorded in the late 60s (and I am a cast iron, copper bottomed Laura Nyro fanatic) - inpenetrably baroque orchestration, and rampant lyricism, obscuring the emotional core of the songs. Whereas Laura Nyro could just about hold arrangements like this together through sheer melodic genius, the songs on Ys seem to get lost in a maze of time signature changes and gushing stanzas. Ys doesn't have the stylistic variation of Laura Nyro's albums either, or of comparable 60s/70s records like David Ackles' American Gothic.

This is admittedly after only one listen, and I didnt get too much of her lyrics which a lot of people seem to be tripping on. Plus I've never heard Milk Eyed Mender, so I'm coming to Newsom completely cold. I'm doing some travelling over the next week so I'll get the chance to listen to Ys in more detail, I hope it opens up for me a bit.

There's a fascinating doppleganger of the critical consensus and counter-consensus that's been played out over this record, surrounding the current reviews of the film Pan's Labarynth - Mark Kermode on 5live yesterday called it the Citizen Kane of fantasy cinema and compared it to the Sistine Chapel, Peter Bradshaw in the Guardian saying it was coldly awesome but hard to connect with emotionally, and giving it a fence sitting 3 stars.
 
J

jd_

Well-known member
tate said:
Anyway, the whole 'Albini is against dancing' thing is probably overstated anyway -- did you ever hear or see Space Streakings, the Japanese Industrial freakout noise group who played metal-meets-jesus-lizard guitar *live* along with beats pre-made and played on vinyl on turntables, by their DJ? One of the most absolutely insane live shows I've ever seen . . . anyway, Albini recorded them, over a decade ago.
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His recording of them was a LOT more traditionally rock style than their earlier cd though. I don't know if that was his call or theirs but the dance and synths aspect was turned down or stripped out of everything and I'm pretty sure there were real drums used.
 
L

Logos

Ghosts of my life
jd_ said:
His recording of them was a LOT more traditionally rock style than their earlier cd though. I don't know if that was his call or theirs but the dance and synths aspect was turned down or stripped out of everything and I'm pretty sure there were real drums used.
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He's also on record in 94 or 95 saying samplers are a waste of time...as far as I remember the quote it was "you'll spend 2 days sampling air and then put it back in its box" or something similarly stupid.
 
T

tate

Brown Sugar
Logos said:
He's also on record in 94 or 95 saying samplers are a waste of time...as far as I remember the quote it was "you'll spend 2 days sampling air and then put it back in its box" or something similarly stupid.
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jd_ said:
His recording of them [Space Streakings] was a LOT more traditionally rock style than their earlier cd though. I don't know if that was his call or theirs but the dance and synths aspect was turned down or stripped out of everything and I'm pretty sure there were real drums used.
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Hmm, this is interesting, jd_. I'm certainly no expert, but are you talking about the Space Streakings album with Mount Shasta, Shakuhachi Surprise, from 1996, on Skin Graft? I was referring to the full-length entitled 7-Toku, which was released in 1994 on Skin Graft, and has wall to wall drum machines, synths, noises, and even a few samples [esp on the track, "Zurineat (Never Listen! For DiscoAttacker Only"] -- and the producer credited on 7-Toku was Steve Albini. I could have things all wrong though.

But I take your general point, jd_, along with Logos' (and Gabba Flamenco's original point, too) -- and you are all no doubt right: Albini's been consistently hostile to dance music, samples, and digital technology in general (his outspoken hostility toward hip-hop is notorious), and need not be recuperated/defended simply because he recorded a Japanese band who used drum machines!
 
D

dubversion

Guest
I remember watching Albini do a 'DJ set' once. He would play one party hit - perhaps Death Disco or something by Whitehouse - let it run its course and then remove it from the deck. At which point he'd spend some time rifling through his record box considering his next choice, which he would cue up and play.

I mostly love albini for his bloodymindedness, but sometimes he does need a slap :)
 
B

bassnation

the abyss
HMGovt said:
The very best bit is 4.22 to 4.45 of sawdust & diamonds. I almost broke down and drove into a tree alongside the A47 when that broke open for me the first time.

And the meteorites, meteroids, meteors chorus in emily is something to hear over and over.

Contentwise, it reminds me of the fiery furnaces, particularly on blueberry boat, yet more elfin, free-range and lilting like devendra banhardt on rejoicing in hands. Deeply gorgeous.
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its great - and believe me, this is something i never thought i'd appreciate. my wife has been playing it non-stop at home and it really is the most incredible, warm, vibey music. ok, so her singing style sounds like one of the muppet monsters, but thats part of the charm - doesn't sound gimmicky in any way.

i love the fact that i live with a woman who has totally different tastes to me otherwise i might never have stumbled on to gems like this.
 
J

jd_

Well-known member
tate said:
Hmm, this is interesting, jd_. I'm certainly no expert, but are you talking about the Space Streakings album with Mount Shasta, Shakuhachi Surprise, from 1996, on Skin Graft? I was referring to the full-length entitled 7-Toku, which was released in 1994 on Skin Graft, and has wall to wall drum machines, synths, noises, and even a few samples [esp on the track, "Zurineat (Never Listen! For DiscoAttacker Only"] -- and the producer credited on 7-Toku was Steve Albini. I could have things all wrong though.
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I was talking about 7-Toku in comparison to Hatsukoi, an earlier album. I didn't realise they released another one after that. Is it any good? 7-Toku was a real let down for me at the time but I haven't heard it in a long time. I don't remember it having any synths or drum machines at all although I'm sure you are right. Their role is very different at any rate. I'm not even sure there are guitars on Hatsukoi... I think it's just synths and horns.
Were they playing trumpets and stuff when you saw them?
 
hint

hint

party record with a siren
jd_ said:
I don't know if that was his call or theirs but the dance and synths aspect was turned down or stripped out of everything and I'm pretty sure there were real drums used.
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He records whoever pays him and mixes the results according to their wishes.

As i understand it, he's certainly not against synths, samplers, drum machines etc. as a rule.
 
matt b

matt b

Indexing all opinion
swears said:
Why is there so much hype around her? I really don't get it at all...
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listen ;)

i think two of the songs on the album are astounding- the first track and the way it sucks you in, with the pay-off of the 'meteorites' section and the one with the jews harp/ male backing vocals, which is weeping material.

i don't like the second song which sounds really forced though- fantasy lyical content that remains (for me) superficial.

joanna's vocals on this album are soooo much better than on previous releases (and i really enjoyed milk eyed mendor)- less forced/ high pitched- it almost breaks on occasion, sort of deep soul-esque. genuinely moving.

like mr silver-dollar mentioned some time ago, a really addictive set of songs that re-pays repeated listening in this i-pod age as an lp (2nd song omitted)
 
V

Violator

Member
Oh dear

Heard this driving a van very slowly out of North London to Norfolk. Confusing, si. Calming, no. Jury still out here. Changed it for Queens of the Stone Age which passed the time in a more tme consuming fashion.
 
T

tate

Brown Sugar
jd_ said:
I was talking about 7-Toku in comparison to Hatsukoi, an earlier album. I didn't realise they released another one after that. Is it any good? 7-Toku was a real let down for me at the time but I haven't heard it in a long time . . . Were they playing trumpets and stuff when you saw them?
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I haven't heard the record after 7-Toku, but it was a collaboration with Mount Shasta, if that tells you anything. I saw Space Streakings in '95 I think it was (perhaps '96), when they were touring with Mount Shasta (whom I remember as being very uninteresting). I hadn't heard their music before seeing the live performance, and was quite shocked, in a pleasant way, by the organized chaos of it all. 7-Toku, which I bought soon after, was a far cry from representing the live show. The one fellow played a horn, 'sang,' and most memorably, played some sort of chainsaw (?) while running around the venue. It seemed like pure mayhem at the time, though there could not have been more than ten or twenty people in the old concert hall where they played. All beats were supplied by a turntablist. Perhaps he was manipulating a drum machine too . . . the whole thing was just sort of mindboggling and unexpected, and I remember laughing out loud at the sheer absurdity -- and total commitment, each note rendered with such precision -- of it all.
 
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